Time Warp High School Au
by Writer25
Summary: Joe the nice guy, Sam the smart guy, and Fred the lovable jock are three best friends trying to make it through the up and downs of high school. No magic, no time travel just friendship, drama, and relationships. AU not related to my other stories.
1. Prologue: Sports Camp

**A/N- Ugh, I totally couldn't make up my mind whether or not to post this but I guess I will. Even though the female characters are pretty much the same, this is a normal AU universe so it doesn't relate at all to my other stories. Read and Review and tell me if you want more pls.**

The summer sports camp was large with separate fields for football and soccer teams, a baseball field, and a cheerleading field as well as a communal dining hall, and separate dorm rooms for the guys and girls. Everyone in Brooklyn who were either already on their high school team, or wanted to make a team was there. Sure it cost a pretty penny to go, but it was worth it.

Fred would officially be a high school freshman come September. He had grown a few inches taller and gained a little more muscle. His hair was still the blond curly mess it always was, but he didn't wear his signature hat as often as he used to.

Right now Fred was running suicides with his new friend Kevin back and forth across the football field. They ran, tossing a ball back and forth and touched down between the cones laid out for them. Sweat stung Fred's eyes and his leg muscles were cramping, but he forced himself to keep going. He was aiming to make varsity by his junior year and some stupid suicides weren't going to stop him.

"So Fred," Kevin panted. "I hear you're the top pick for co-captain for our team. Is it true?"

"I think so," Fred panted. "That'd be pretty sweet. But it'd be cool just to make quarterback."

"I'm more of a wide receiver myself." Kevin grinned. "Or an Outside Linebacker."

The coach blew two long bursts on his whistle, finally releasing them for the day. There was more than one groan of pain as everyone straightened up and headed to the showers. Kevin nudged Fred's arm and gestured over to the next field. The cheerleaders were who had been practicing in the field next to them had just gotten out of practice too. Already the guys were whistling, cat-calling, and generally showing off to get their attention. The girls giggled and pretended not to care, but it was obvious by the way they were flipping their hair that they were trying to get their attention too.

"Dude check it out," Kevin leaned close to him excitedly. "See those girls over there? I think they go to our school!"

Fred glanced over to where he was gesturing and saw a couple of girls giggling to each other and glancing their way.

Kevin gave them a cheeky grin, flipping his red hair out of his eyes. "Fred, how sweet would it be to land one of them as your next girlfriend? They're total hotties."

Fred shrugged. "I guess they're cute, but I'm not into girls like that."

"Uh, really? Dude, are you like... into guys or something?" Kevin said giving him a weird look.

"What? No!" Fred felt his face flame. "I just meant that-"

"Dude relax, it's cool." Kevin said quickly. "I'm not judging. You do you, brah."

Fred scoffed. "Whatever, I'm not... I just have better things to do than to get involved with cheerleaders."

"Uh-huh. Sure. Totally."

Fred resisted the urge to punch him and headed into the locker room for a much needed shower. He really didn't swing that way, it was just dating brought nothing but drama. Girlfriends demanded time and attention that Fred just thought would be better spent playing sports, eating, or hanging out with his best friends Joe and Sam.

After showering and changing into some normal clothes, Fred headed into the dining room for some grub. He loaded his tray with some hot dogs and fries and headed over to the table where his team was sitting. As soon as he sat down a few of them snickered.

Fred glared at Kevin. "What the hell did you tell them?"

"Nothing much." Kevin chuckled. "I just warned them not to judge in case they saw you with one of the male cheerleaders."

"For the last time I'm not gay." Fred growled.

"Yeah, maybe he just has a really ugly girlfriend back home." Another guy laughed. "You know, one with a _great personality_."

The table erupted into laughter and Fred felt his temper rising along with his embarrassment. Why didn't he just lie and say he had a hot girlfriend in another state or across the country or overseas or something?

"Shut your traps, alright!?" Fred snapped. "It's not that I don't like girls. It's just... the girl I date has to be a perfect ten. Totally hot, totally cool, and top of the pyramid kind of cheerleader."

Okay, he had no idea what that last thing meant, but he overheard one of the guys say it when talking about his own girlfriend.

Kevin laughed and nudged his shoulder. "Then take your pick dude. All the girls at that table are top of the pyramid material. Just make sure you get a girl from our school."

Fred held back a sigh of irritation and looked towards the cheerleaders. His eyes fell on the same group of girls he saw earlier. All of them were pretty good looking he supposed, but one had on a whole lot of makeup (which probably meant she was high maintenance) and two of them looked like they were arguing (which of course meant drama).

Fred was this close to lying and saying that he was gay when his eyes landed on another girl. She was gorgeous with milk chocolate skin and warm brown eyes. She was also pretty curvy with long wavy, brown hair and full lips. Her eyes locked with Fred's and after looking him over, she gave him a small smile which he returned with a nod.

"Dude, you totally caught Joleena's eye!" Kevin whispered excitedly. "Way to go! I hear she's gonna be co-captain of the cheerleading team. Great coincidence huh?"

"Yeah totally." Fred went back to eating. "Maybe I'll talk to her in school or something."

"Why wait? I'll go set you two up right now."

"Uh-huh. Yeah I- wait, no!"

Before Fred could stop him, Kevin got up from the table and went over the cheerleaders. They quickly made room for him and he started whispering to Joleena while glancing over at Fred. Some of the girls whispered to Joleena too until she nodded and whispered something to Kevin. Kevin nodded and came back to the table.

"Well it's all set up." He smiled proudly. "Meet her outside in ten minutes. And make sure to invite me to your wedding, alright big guy?"

"Yeah remind me to thank you later." Fred mumbled.

A few minutes later Joleena stood up from her table and headed out the door, walking right past his table on the way. A gentle wave of sweet smelling perfume followed after her and Fred couldn't help but notice how shapely her legs were.

Kevin cleared his throat and Fred stood up to follow after her. The night air was warm and the moon shone over the camp. He met Joleena over where they had orientation and sat down next to her on the bottom bleacher.

"Hey," He gave her a toothy smile. "My name's Fred."

"Joleena." She said in a soft French accent. "So I hear you're co-captain of our football team."

"Technically that's just a rumor. But I hear your co-captain of our cheerleading team. That's cool."

"Actually I might be. They haven't voted yet."

"Oh."

They became quiet and things only got more awkward between them. All Fred needed to do was turn on the charm, flirt a little, and ask her out. 1, 2, 3 and he had a hot cheerleader girlfriend and the rest of the guys would finally leave him alone.

"You're accent is really cute." He smiled. "Are you an exchange student or something?"

Joleena shook her head. "Actually I was born in New York, but I just spent the past couple years in France. What about you?"

"I was born and raised in Brooklyn, but I think my ancestors came from Ireland or something."

"Interesting." Joleena gave him beautiful smile but then became quiet again.

But then again if things didn't work out between them, things could end up even more awkward then they were already.

Fred sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "Look Joleena, you seem like a nice girl and everything, but to be honest I'm not really interested in dating girls."

"Oh?" Joleena's eyes widened in surprise. "So... you're interested in dating guys then?"

"No!" Fred groaned. "Why does everyone keep saying that? I just don't like all the drama that comes with dating."

"Are you serious?" Joleena gave him an odd look and he cringed. Great, now all the cheerleaders would be making fun of him. But to his surprise, Joleena laughed in relief. "I feel the same way!"

Fred blinked in surprise. "You do?"

"Yes!" Joleena gave another laugh. "The last boyfriend I had got angry if I so much as spoke to another guy, and yet I found out he had been cheating on me with my best friend for months."

"That's nothing." Fred laughed. "My last girlfriend flipped out and dumped me because I didn't text her while I was hanging at my best friend Joe's house."

"How inconsiderate of you." Joleena said sarcastically, then giggled. "Oh relationships are such a pain. And it's so annoying how everyone expects us to do it."

"Tell me about it." Fred grumbled.

"But... maybe we might be able to work around that." Joleena leaned in conspiratorially. "What if we did start dating?"

Fred raised an eyebrow. "Um, Joleena, no offense or anything, but I just told you that I'm not interested in dating. And I thought you weren't either."

"But that's the point!" Joleena said eagerly. "Neither of us really want to date anyone, so why not pretend to date each other? We pretend in front of our teammates and the generally public, but we have no real romantic obligation to each other."

"You think that will work?" Fred leaned forward too. "What if you actually meet a guy you like or something?"

"I doubt that I will, but if that does happen we just have a friendly break up."

"I don't know Joleena," Fred looked away. "I'm, um... I don't think I'd make a very good boyfriend."

"Oh don't worry about that." Joleena waved her hand dismissively. "I'll train you and tell you everything you need to do. It's just ten percent appearance and ninety percent lying. You'll be fine. So do we have a deal?"

Fred thought for a minute. With Joleena as his fake girlfriend, he could keep the guys off his back and maybe even avoid having other girls flirt with him. He grinned and grasped her hand.

"Alright. Let's do it!"


	2. Freshman Year: First Day of School

**A/N- Huh, I didn't necessarily plan on having this chapter done so quickly, but enjoy anyway and review plz.**

The September air was cool with just a hint of left over summer warmth. It was almost as if it didn't realize that today was the first day of school and summer vacation had officially ended yesterday. Everywhere across Brooklyn alarm clocks were going off and teenagers were groaning as if in agony, pleading for their parents to let them have five more minutes of sleep. But there was breakfast to eat, teeth to brush, and buses to catch. So whether they liked it or not they rolled out of bed and started to get ready for school.

Joe ignored the blaring coming from his alarm clock and buried his head under his pillow. He was totally going to get up. He just needed five more minutes and he would totally be up. Just five or six more minutes…

"Joe!" His mom opened his door. "Joe honey, better get up or you'll be late for school!"

"Wha-huh?" Joe sat up with a yawn and wiped the remaining drool off his face. "Ugh, coming, coming."

He stumbled out of bed, still groggy from sleep and headed into the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror and grinned. Today he was officially a high school freshman and things were already looking up. He finally got his braces off during the summer so there was no ugly metal wires to mar his teeth. His hair had also grown out a little and he kept it slightly messy and spiked with hair gel.

After he finished getting dressed in a pair of ratty jeans and a t shirt, Joe headed downstairs for breakfast. He passed Anna's room on the way and found she was still asleep in bed. Being two years younger than him, Anna was still in middle school so she didn't have to wake up for another hour.

"Aw, how cute." Joe said sarcastically.

He picked up a stuffed animal from her doorway and threw it at her, hitting her square in the head.

"Ow!" Anna started angrily. "Moooom!"

"Joseph Arthur get down her now!" His mom called.

Joe laughed and slid down the banister. His mom handed him a plate a pancakes and he sat down to tear into them. Mrs. Arthur shook her head with a smile and poured herself a cup of coffee.

"So, any plans for this year, Joe?" She asked.

"I dunno. Goof off, cut classes, maybe repeat a grade or two." Joe teased.

"Funny young man, wanna try again though?"

"Just kidding mom," Joe polished off his pancakes and jumped up. "Gotta go now. See you after school."

"Have a nice day!" Mrs. Arthur called as he left through the front door.

Joe glanced at his watch and broke into a light jog in order to make it to the bus stop in time.

* * *

Sam made sure to wake up early to go through his morning check list. He pulled up the itemized list on the brand new tablet his mom bought him as a going to high school present and read the list out loud.

"Bed made-check, back pack ready- check, phone and tablet charged-check." He smiled. "I just have to make sure I look decent and I'm good to go."

Sam closed his bedroom room in order to check out his appearance in the full length mirror. His tan khakis were neatly pressed, his dress shirt and red sweater vest were spotless, and his hair was… messy, but what else was new?

The alarm on his phone beeped and Sam quickly grabbed his back page and headed downstairs for breakfast. His mom was already at the table in her robe, tapping away on her laptop and drinking a cup of coffee. She barely glanced up when he entered the kitchen, but he could see that she had a pot of oatmeal on the stove ready for him.

"Morning mom." He greeted, grabbing a bowl. "Working on another article?"

"Mmhm, the benefits of technology in the education system." Mrs. Kikin yawned. "Ready for high school? It's the first day of four years."

Sam grinned and joined her at the table. "I know, I'm finally going to be able to take AP classes. Hopefully they'll be more challenging."

"But nothing's too challenging for you, my little genius."

"But a little challenge helps exercise the brain." Sam chuckled a bit smugly. "Not that my brain needs much exercising."

Sam's phone alarm chimed again just as he finished breakfast so he quickly put his bowl in the sink, kissed his mom on the cheek, and headed out the door. Instead of taking a bus and actually saving a little time in the mornings, Sam preferred getting up early and walking to school. It wasn't that far and it was a pleasant walk in fair weather. It also gave him a peaceful moment to himself before the school day began. He took a deep breath and smiled.

"Today's going to be a great day."

* * *

When Fred could no longer ignore his screaming alarm clock he rolled out of bed and grabbed a quick shower. After he toweled off Fred couldn't help but check himself out in the mirror.

Flexing his muscles, Fred grinned at his reflection. "Man I am one good looking guy."

He got dressed in a pair of jeans and a t shirt, making sure to grab his letterman's jacket. By the end of the summer he had been officially declared his team's co-captain and was thus the only freshman to already have a letter jacket.

Downstairs his dad was sitting in the kitchen reading the newspaper and eating an orange. Fred hungrily spotted a plate of eggs, sausage, and bacon waiting for him.

"Morning dad." Fred sat down to eat. "Not on duty today."

"Nope, I finally got a day off." Mr. O'Leary looked at him. "Want a ride to school today?"

Fred spoke with his mouth full. "Naw, Kevin is picking me up."

As if on que there was a honk outside and Fred scarfed down the rest of his food.

"Later, dad!" He called as he ran out the door.

Kevin and a couple other guys from the team were piled in Kevin's new SUV that he got for his birthday. Kevin shot him an easy grin as Fred got into the passenger seat and they bumped fists.

"Sup dude." They bumped fists. "Ready for the first day of hanging with the kings of the school?"

"Kings of the school?" Fred's eyes widened. "That sounds awesome!"

"Dude, it's more than awesome." Jeffrey piped from the backseat. "Being one of us means going to the coolest parties, getting nerds to do your homework for you, and if you're awesome enough on the field you could even score yourself a free ride to college."

"Not to mention the hot girls." Kevin wagged his eyebrows. "You and Joleena got pretty close during the summer. Always disappearing when we had some down time."

Fred smirked. "Yeah well, what can I say? She couldn't stay away from me."

Truth be told the reason why he and Joleena kept disappearing was because she was trying to prepare him for their fake relationship. They went over boundaries, rules, expectations, and of course they got to know each other a little.

Kevin pulled into one of the best parking spots near the front of the school. Students were milling around, some already in their cliques, and rushing in and out of the school. Fred felt the smallest twinge of nervousness. High school was so much bigger than elementary or middle school had been. He couldn't even see Joe or Sam in the crowd.

"And there are our queens now." Kevin said getting out of car.

Fred stopped looking for his friends and followed the others out of the car. Lounging around in their uniforms were the cheerleaders. Joleena smiled at him and Fred felt his nervousness lift. Joleena had the type of surety about her that you felt confident about yourself just by being around her. He walked up to her and draped an arm around her shoulders.

"Hey babe." He smiled and kissed the top of her head.

"Hey yourself." She shot him a flirty smile and went back to her conversation with the cheerleaders.

Fred let his mind wander and barely listened to the conversations going around him. They were gossiping mostly about other kids he didn't know or care about. He waited until the guys started talking sports before actually joining the conversation.

"Are you kidding me?" Fred scoffed. "The Cubs have no chance against the Yankees this year. My man CC Sabathia is going to make sure of that."

"Puh-lease." Chris rolled his eyes. "My man Jon Lester totally has him beat."

The first warning bell sounded, ending their debate, and everyone filed into the school in a massive herd. Joleena wrapped her arm around Fred's waist, hooking her thumb into his pant loop.

"So do we have any plans after school today?" Fred asked Joleena as they headed to her locker. "I know we have a team meeting but it shouldn't take that long."

Joleena glanced at him. "Well I wasn't planning anything. Why do you ask?"

"Well I thought you'd want to meet my best friends Joe and Sam." Fred smiled with a shrug. "I haven't exactly told them I had a girlfriend, but I'm sure they'd be cool with meeting you."

"No need for that, Fred." Joleena giggled. "We don't have to make a big production out of this."

"Alright. If that's what you want."

He leaned next to her as she put her books in her locker and touched up her makeup. He couldn't help but notice that more than one guy eyed Joleena as they walked past, even some of the seniors. And a few envious looks were thrown his away as well. A smug smile appeared on Fred's lips.

"If you want you can go find Joe and Sam." Joleena said gently. "I think I'll be fine by myself for a little while."

"Cool." Fred started to move away but Joleena cleared her throat.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" She smirked playfully.

Fred felt his face grow warm. "Um, r-right. Sorry."

Joleena giggled as Fred stepped towards her again, leaned down, and brushed his lips against her soft cheek. She let out a breathy sigh.

"Very good." She whispered. "You are improving."

"Thanks." He whispered back with a wink. "Later, Joleena."

Trying not to look like a freshman about it, Fred snuck his locker assignment out of his pocket and took a peek. Locker #211 in hallway 2A? Great. Now he was regretting not going to the open house Sam tried to drag him and Joe to. All these hallways looked the same. Glancing at the clock he saw he had ten minutes to get to his locker and get to class.

"Ugh, I have to find someone how can help me without looking like a total dork." He mumbled to himself.

His eyes landed on a blond haired kid walking just ahead. He quickly caught up to them.

"Hey, do you know where hallway 2A is?" He said close to their ear.

"Huh!?"

The person jumped and turned around. She looked too young to be even a freshman and had messy, light blond hair tangled into two braids. She blinked up at him, blushing with embarrassment.

"I-I'm sorry what did you say?" She piped.

"Hallway 2A." Fred said with a bit of impatience. "Do you know where it it?"

"U-um," She fumbled with the papers in her arms. "U-uh, I'm headed that way-"

"Do you mind just pointing it out? I'm kinda in a rush."

She bobbed her head and pointed. Fred shot her a quick thank you and took off.

* * *

"How lucky is it that we have lockers together?" Joe asked Sam as they waited for Fred.

"Actually, it's not as lucky as you think." Sam adjusted his glasses. "If you guys went to the open house like I did, you would know that they put most of the freshmen in this hallway."

Joe only rolled his eyes. If Sam wasn't his best friend he would call the guy a know it all. Fred came up to them slightly out of breath.

"Hey guys." He said moving in between them to get to his locker. "Sorry I'm late. I was hanging with some of the team."

"Well you made it just in time. The warning bell is going to ring soon." Sam said checking the clock.

"We'll be fine." Fred said dismissively. "So what do you guys got first? I have stupid Algebra I in room 106. I don't even know where that is."

"I have that class so we can go together." Sam said.

"Ugh, I have English Lit I." Joe grumbled. "I have to read like, five novels for that class."

"That sucks." Fred said sympathetically.

The five minute warning bell rang out loudly and students began rushing to class. Fred and Sam took off in one direction for their class and Joe quickly grabbed the books form his locker. He then spun around and collided with someone, knocking them both down and sending their books and papers scattering to the ground.

"Darn it!" Joe exclaimed, rubbing his arm.

He looked up and saw that the person he had knocked over was a young blond girl with messy hair that almost covered her bright blue eyes. She rubbed the bruise on her cheek and blushed.

"S-sorry." She piped in a voice he almost couldn't hear. "I-I didn't mean to."

Joe cringed. The poor thing was practically terrified. He gave her a friendly smile to hopefully portray that he wasn't mad.

"No, it's my fault. I wasn't paying attention." He quickly helped sort out their things and saw that they had the same English textbook. "Hey it looks like we have the same class together."

The girl nodded. "And it looks like we're going to be late."

Joe laughed and helped her to her feet. "Then we should hurry then huh?"

Once she was steady on her feet the girl quickly pulled her hand out of Joe's and clutched her things to her chest. As they hurried to their class, Joe couldn't help but notice that her clothes were a little baggy and the colors were slightly faded. Thankfully their classroom wasn't that far away and they made it just before the final bell rang. They quickly took the available seats at the back.

"Whoo, made it just in time." Joe chuckled under his breath just as the teacher came in and closed the door. He turned to the girl and smiled. "My name's Joe by the way, what's yours?"

The girl brush her hair out of her eyes and smiled. "Fina."


	3. Freshman Year: Cafeteria Minefield

The cafeteria was crowded and loud with the sound of conversations, arguments, and flirting. After Joe paid for his food he stepped out of line and looked around. Before him was a sea of unfamiliar faces. Fred and Sam were nowhere to be seen so Joe had honestly no idea where to sit. And he saw enough high school movies to know that the cafeteria was basically a social mine field. But then he spotted a familiar tangle of blonde hair sitting at a table by herself. Joe smiled and headed over.

"Hey," He said setting his tray down. "Is this seat taken?"

Fina jumped at the sound of his voice, her eyes wide with panic. "I-I'm sorry. I can move if you want me to."

Joe resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "No… I was just wondering if I could sit with you."

"Oh." Fina nodded. "Okay."

She became silent after that and went back to staring out the window, almost like she forgot he was there. Joe started eating, trying to think of some way to start a conversation. He felt awkward just sitting there with nothing but silence when his eyes drifted down and saw that she had a sketch book with her.

"You draw?" He asked eagerly. "Can I see?"

Fina looked startled and shook her head, her blond hair shifting around her terrified face.

"Aww come on please?" Joe begged giving her his best puppy dog face. "Please, please, please?"

Fina lowered her head, her hair covering her face completely and her shoulders began to tremble. For a second Joe was terrified that she was crying. But when she lifted her head he was relieved to see that she was struggling not to laugh.

"Okay," She giggled. "You can look at it but only for a little while."

Joe nodded and started paging through the well-worn sketchbook. The sketchbook was filled with really amazing drawings. Some were life like renditions of people and animals drawn with charcoal and pencils. Others were more illustrative drawings colored with markers and colored pencils.

"Whoa. This is really cool, Fina." Joe smiled. "You're a really talented artist. How long have you been drawing?"

"W-well I-"

"Hey Joe. Sorry I'm late." Sam came to the table and sat down with his lunch bag.

"It's cool." Joe nodded at Fina who became silent again and withdrawn again. "Sam, this Fina. We have English Lit I together. Check out her cool sketch book."

Fina flushed in embarrassment but Sam looked at the sketch book with polite interest.

"This is really good." He said thumbing through the pages.

"Thanks." Fina whispered softly.

Sam handed it back to her and she quickly put it in her bag. Her eyes flickered to Joe for half a second and she quickly looked away again. Sam gave him a weird look and Joe shrugged.

"So how's your day been?" Joe asked him. "English was alright but I thought I was going to die in U.S History. We already have a quiz next week."

"Ha! Try AP Government." Sam scoffed. "I have a six page paper due next week comparing two different legislative systems."

Joe cringed. "Okay, you win. That does sound worse than mine."

They both glanced towards Fina, but she just sat there quietly watching them from under her heavy bangs. She met Joe's glance with a small smile and blushed.

"I like my Earth Science class." She said quietly.

"Ugh, science is my worst subject." Joe groaned. "I'm definitely not looking forward to it tomorrow."

"By the way, where's Fred?" Sam asked. "I thought we had the same lunch period together."

* * *

"Why is it so important that we get back to the school?" Joleena asked. "We have another twenty minutes."

Joleena had followed after Fred when he left the rest of the team at the pizza place. It wasn't Ray's but it was close to the school. Usually only juniors and seniors were allowed to leave school grounds during lunch, but the security guard didn't seem to care that they were doing it.

"I told my friends I was going to have lunch with them." Fred explained as they walked back to the school. He looked over his shoulder at her. "You didn't have to come with me you know. I'm sure Jackie would have given you a ride if you didn't want to walk."

"And listen to more of their insipid gossiping? No thanks." Joleena mumbled.

Fred chuckled. "What's wrong? Getting bored with being popular already?"

"Of course not!" Joleena huffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "I just have… an errand I want to take care of."

They entered the school and Joleena headed towards the library while Fred went inside the cafeteria. He looked around the cafeteria for Joe and Sam. Several girls tried to get his attention and he shot them a smile but otherwise ignored them. He finally spotted Joe and Sam sitting at a table near the window and headed over.

"Hey guys," He said sitting down. "Sorry I'm late. The team wanted to go to that pizza place nearby for lunch."

Sam frowned and adjusted his glasses. "But I thought school policy only allowed the juniors and seniors to leave school grounds during lunch."

"I know, it's one of the special "privileges" I get for being a jock." He said smugly.

Joe rolled his eyes. "Please excuse him, Fina. Fred's ego isn't usually this inflated."

"Fina?" Fred blinked and for the first time noticed a girl sitting across from them. "Hey, didn't I run into you in the hallway?"

"U-um yeah," She whispered in a voice he could barely hear. "You, um, asked me…"

Fred's smile slowly disappeared as she spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, with her head hanging down. The noise of the cafeteria easily drowned out her voice and Fred's ears were beginning to hurt from straining to hear her.

"I'm sorry but can you speak up a little?" He interrupted. "I can barely hear you when you whisper like that."

Fina flinched like he had hit her and lowered her head even further. Joe frowned and elbowed him.

"Ow! Sorry, I'm not trying to be rude, but I don't understand how you can hear her either. It's like talking to a mouse or something."

"Fred! Maybe you should shut up now?" Joe said in a low voice and gestured towards Fina.

"What? I'm just saying-oh." Fred glanced at Fina and immediately shut his mouth.

Large tears were standing out on Fina's eye lashes and her mouth trembled. Fred felt his stomach twist with guilt.

"Ah man. Look, I didn't mean to-"

The bell cut him off and Fina fled from the table before he could finish his apology. Fred started to follow her, but Joe put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Why don't you let me talk to her?" He said. "Geez Fred, I swear you were raised in a cave or something."

He gave an exasperated shake of his head and followed after Fina. Fred sighed and walked with Sam to their locker.

"I really didn't mean to insult her." Fred muttered shoving his hands in his pockets. "How was I supposed to know that Fiona was so sensitive?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "Ugh, first of all her name is Fina… I think. And second of all, you were pretty mean to her."

"I was just asking her to speak up a little geez! Seriously, could either of you hear her over everyone else in the cafeteria!?"

"Um… no, not really." Sam admitted with a shrug. "But still, you called her a mouse. That's pretty harsh."

"Whatever." Fred mumbled.

They reached their lockers and began exchanging books and notebooks. Fred's guilt had was now laced with mild annoyance. Why did he have to be the bad guy just because Fina or Fiona or whatever didn't know how to speak up in a loud cafeteria? But still… he did feel like a jerk for making her cry like that.

Joe made it to his locker and gave a tired sigh. "Well I talked to her and she said she was used to people saying things like that to her. Geez, as if being around her wasn't awkward enough."

"Okay, okay I'll apologize to her." Fred grumbled. "What time is she coming over to do homework with us?"

Joe blinked in surprise. "Who said she was coming over to hang out with us?"

"Well duh, I thought she was your new friend or something? You guys were sitting with her at lunch."

"I was just sitting there because Joe was sitting there." Sam shrugged.

"And I was just sitting there because I couldn't find either of you two. I barely know the girl." Joe said.

Fred frowned. "Well if neither of you guys are friends with her, then why are you all getting on my back?"

Sam smirked at his confusion. "Because we weren't the ones dumb enough to make her cry."

"So, neither of you are friends with her but I still have to apologize?"

"Yep."

"Sounds about right."

The warning bell rang causing Fred to wince and check the time. He didn't know if she would get mad at him for it, but he completely forgot that he was supposed to walk Joleena to class.

"If I happen to see Fiona I'll apologize alright?" Fred said walking away. "Now if you excuse me, I have something important to do."

"Her name's Fina!" Joe called after him, but Fred was already heading to Joleena's locker. If he was lucky and her class wasn't too far away, he could walk her there and still make it to his own class on time.

He found Joleena in the hallway with two girls trailing behind her. Joleena was always surrounded by girls asking for advice or just wanting to hear her opinion on something. Fred smiled. Sure their conversations were usually pointless, but unlike the rest of the cheerleaders Joleena was rarely mean to even the unpopular wanna be girls.

Joleena looked up at him and smiled. "Hey babe. I was just wondering where you were."

"Yeah, I kinda got caught up with something." He fell into step beside her and took her books from her. He then shot a smile at the girls walking beside her. "Hey ladies."

"Hey Fred." One girls giggled and nudged her friend. "Um, we'll just give you two love birds some space. I can't wait to see your first game Fred!" Both girls erupted into giggles and scurried down the hall.

"So how was lunch with your friends?" Joleena asked nicely. "I hope you didn't hurry away from them to see me."

Fred looked down at her in surprise. "But I thought I was supposed to walk you to class and stuff?"

"You can hang out with your friends too. I don't mind." Joleena giggled. "I'm not your ex sweetheart. I won't get mad at you."

"Well that's a relief." Fred grumbled. "My friends are already on my back for making some girl cry. All I asked her to do was speak up. She was talking so quietly I couldn't hear her."

"That girl wouldn't happen to have ratty blond braids and baggy clothes would she?"

"Actually yeah, how'd you know?"

"Ugh," Joleena blushed and rolled her eyes. "I know exactly who you're talking about. I made the innocent observation that her hairstyle made me think of Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, and now the other cheerleaders won't stop calling her that. And everyone thinks I started it on purpose!"

Fred burst out laughing. "You guys actually called her Dorothy!? That's so mean, Joleena!"

"It wasn't my fault! I didn't braid her hair or force her to wear plaid!" Joleena sighed. "It wasn't even an insult when you think about it!"

Fred chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Whatever you say, babe."

Joleena narrowed her eyes playfully and pursed her lips. "At least I didn't make her cry."

Fred rolled his eyes with a smile. They reach her class with just enough time for Fred make it to his class two doors down.

"See you at practice?" He asked handing her books back.

Joleena nodded and tilted her head so he'd kiss her cheek. Fred did so and there were light cheers from the students in the hallway. Instead of feeling embarrassed though, Fred laughed it off and headed into his class. Being popular really did have its perks.


	4. Freshman Year: Adrenaline

**A/N- Crap, I accidentally fell in love with the story and now I can't stop writing.**

Joe had fallen absolutely and completely in love with her. They only had one class together and they barely spoke, but there was no denying what he felt for her. The way she stared out the window, the way her hair caught the florescent light, and the way she wrote notes in the little book she carried around with her. Yep. There was no denying it. Joe was completely in love with Joleena Beauchene.

The fall air had turned chilly in the middle of October. Joleena sat in front of him two seats to the left wearing a turtle neck, short sleeve sweater, a knee length denim skirt, and high heeled leather boots. Joe sat in the French class they shared and stared at her, trying to rehearse in his head how he was going to talk to her.

He could risk passing a note to her, complementing the way she looked. But then there was the risk of getting caught by the teacher and thoroughly humiliated. Or he could walk up to her after class and use some of the French he had been learning. Just was walk up to her, kiss her hand and say, _'tu es tres belle'_. Or was it _'est tu tres belle'_? Naw, either one was way too cheesy.

Joleena was one of the "queens of the school" as other students dubbed them. They were the most popular girls ranging from head cheerleaders to captain of the female sports teams and even just regular rich, pretty girls. Joe didn't run with the popular or even the sorta popular crowd, so he didn't really know too much about them, but he was pretty sure that it was safe to assume that she already had a boyfriend. That didn't stop Joe from thinking about her though. Or fantasizing about running his fingers through her soft, wavy…

"Joseph!"

"Huh!?"

The teacher was suddenly standing by his desk, glaring down at him. " _Pouvez- vous me dire ce que je dis en ce moment?"_

"Uh… _oui_?"

"Oh." A small smirk came to the teacher's lips. " _Alors qu'est-ce?_ "

Joe just looked at him blankly, feeling his face heat up with embarrassment. " _Que votre bouche est poilue?"_

The whole class erupted into laughter and the teacher glowered at him, looking down right pissed. Joe cringed and waited for him to start yelling when someone cleared their throat.

"Uh, _pardonnez-moi monsieur_ Thomas," Joleena spoke up in a clear voice full of sympathy, " _s'il vous plaît excusez- Joseph , son français est très pauvre et il n'a aucune idée de ce qu'il dit_."

Joe felt his heartbeat quicken. He had no idea what Joleena said, but she spoke French so perfectly that he wondered why she wasn't teaching the class. And her voice was like warm, golden honey, he could listen to her talk all day.

The teacher humphed and finally turned away from Joe. "Next time Joseph perhaps you should spend more time paying attention and less time day dreaming. Then Joleena wouldn't have to save you from getting a detention."

There was another round of chuckling from the class. Joe shot Joleena a grateful smile but she was back to writing in her notebook. The bell rang signaling the end of class. Joe got up hoping to thank her in person but she was swept away by the crowd. He quickly gathered his things and looked for her in the hallway, but she was already surrounded by her friends and admirers.

"Oh well," Joe sighed. "Maybe next time."

"What happens next time?" A soft voice said behind him.

Joe turned around and gave Fina an embarrassed smile. "Nothing. Forget I said anything."

Fina returned his smile and they started walking to their lockers together. Over the past month he and Fina had become somewhat friends. Okay so she followed him around like a lost puppy, but Joe thought she was pretty nice and besides, she helped him a lot with his English Literature assignments.

"So did you finish that worksheet for _To Kill a Mockingbird_?" She asked in a near whisper.

"What?" Joe asked loudly with a teasing smile. "I'm sorry Fina, I couldn't hear you in this INCREDIBLY QUIET HALLWAY."

Ever since the incident in the cafeteria on the first day, Joe had been trying to help Fina speak up a little when she talked. Surprisingly it had worked and she had been coming out of her shell more and more every day.

"I asked if you finished your worksheet yet." She repeated with a slight giggle. "It's due next class."

"I'm… almost finished with it." Joe chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Actually, I've only read the first two chapters of the book. Maybe you can help me? Again?"

They met Sam at the lockers and having heard the last part of the conversation, Sam rolled his eyes.

"Please tell me you aren't still helping him with his assignments, Fina." He said. "Take it from me, Joe never reads the book and never will if you keep telling him the answers to the worksheet."

"I don't mind." Fina said with a small blush. "I like helping Joe."

"Thank you Fina." Joe smiled at her and gave Sam a look. "At least somebody likes helping me out."

"Oh yeah, well what are you going to do when you two don't have the same class anymore?" Sam smirked.

Fina's eyes widened in momentary panic, but Joe merely rolled his eyes and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Then she'll still help keep me on track, because that's what friends are for. Right, Fina?"

A large smile grew on Fina's face and she nodded eagerly but Sam looked down right indignant.

"And just what have I been doing for the past fourteen years!?"

"Being annoyed with him?" Fina guessed sweetly.

Joe burst out laughing and even Sam couldn't help but smile. Honestly, Joe felt a little proud of himself. A month ago Fina could barely look anyone in the eye, let alone speak above a whisper, and now she was actually cracking jokes like a normal person. And all because Joe had taken the time to break her out of her shell.

"Hey guys." Fred smiled coming up to them. "What's so funny?"

Beside him, Fina automatically tensed and stopped laughing. Joe tightened his grip on her shoulders, but she slipped from under his arm and took off down the hallway. Joe cringed inwardly. Even though Fina had opened up around him and Sam, every time she saw Fred she immediately turned tail and ran the other way.

"What the hell is her problem?" Fred said irritably. "Every time she sees me she runs like a scared cat or something."

"She's probably still mad at you for calling her a mouse." Sam said. "Told you, that you were being a jerk to her."

"So? That was a whole month ago!"

Joe rolled his eyes. "Fred, you called her a mouse last week. And a creepy mouse too!"

"Well how was I supposed to know that she had been standing right behind me!?" Fred groaned in frustration. "Besides, I've been called worse things before. What's the big deal?"

Joe and Sam exchanged a look, debating. Fred had been busy with practice and hanging with the jocks that he hadn't been able to hang out with them a lot. And when he was around Fina always made sure to be scarce so Fred wasn't there to hear the story. Joe sighed and decided to tell him.

"Fina's been bullied a lot okay?" He explained. "In elementary school she used to have really long hair, all the way down to her back. But then one day a group of girls put gum in her hair and she had to cut it all off. And then people called her a boy for a year."

Fred's irritation faded from his face. "Wow… I guess that's pretty rough."

"Yeah and you see how she dresses." Sam pointed out, earning a look from Joe. "What? You know how judgmental these girls can be. Trust me, they've made fun of my clothes plenty and at least my clothes are clean."

"Ugh… that's right." Joe mumbled.

What Sam said was completely true. Girls were unusually vicious to Fina and more than once Joe had caught them talking garbage about her. And to be completely honest, he could almost see why. Her clothes were always faded and baggy, and for some reason there were tears or patches in them.

But thinking about Fina's ratty clothes actually made Joe think about Joleena's pristine blouses and skirts. The way her clothes hugged her figure. The sweet scent of her perfume…

"But that still doesn't give her the right to be such a jerk to me!" Fred interrupted his thoughts. "How can I even apologize to her if she runs away whenever she sees me?"

"I guess you'll have to figure that out on your own." Sam shrugged. "Though she'll probably get over it eventually. She doesn't seem like the person to hold a grudge."

"And I can talk to her for you again if you like." Joe offered.

"No thanks." Fred grumbled. "I'll take care of it. After practice, I'll find her and apologize. And if she doesn't then forget her!"

Joe and Sam exchanged another look. Hopefully Fred and Fina would be able to work out any differences they had. Because if not, it would be a lot harder to hang out with Fina when she and their best friend hated each other. And Joe would hate to think what would happen if he and Sam had to choose which of them to be friends with.

* * *

For the first time since kindergarten, Fred actually enjoyed going to school. Being one of the kings was definitely working for him. They had their first game of the season last week and Fred killed it with three touchdowns, winning the game for his team. Ever since then everyone seemed to know his name. He got high fives and praise everywhere he went. And with Joleena by his side as his pretend girlfriend, he could harmlessly flirt with hot girls without worrying about them staking a claim on him. Not to mention it was pretty awesome to hear Joleena cheering specifically for him on the side lines. And she wasn't bad arm candy herself, especially without the drama or commitment. Sure it would have been nice to be able to hang out with Joe and Sam more, but it was super cool to be liked by everyone.

Liked by everyone but _her_. That stupid Fina chick who was always hanging around Joe.

All of Fred's earlier guilt had been completely replaced by pure annoyance. He didn't care how much Fina had been bullied by other people, Fred was _not_ a bully. And he couldn't even apologize to her if she kept running away from him like he was the plague.

Fred thought about all this on the way home from school. Unfortunately he had to walk by himself since Joe had a doctor's appointment, Sam had math club, Kevin was hanging with his new girlfriend, and Joleena was hanging at the mall with some friends.

"Man I hate walking by myself." He muttered. "There's no one to talk to."

That was when he spotted Fina walking a little ahead of him. Perfect. He could apologize to her, she'll finally forgive him, and all this stupid tension between them could be over and done with.

"Hey Fina!" He called, walking faster. "Wait up!"

He caught up to her and flashed her his friendliest smile, but she kept her head down and wouldn't look at him. He felt a twinge of irritation but forced himself to keep smiling.

"So, I've been trying to talk to you for a while now." He said. "You know, to apologize for what happened last month."

"Don't bother." Fina mumbled walking faster.

Fred froze in shock then hurried to catch up to her. "Hey, what's your damage? I'm trying to be nice and apologize here."

"And I said don't bother." Again Fina quickened her pace and kept her head down.

Fred easily over took her though. "Look Fina, I know you're pissed but I said I'm sorry. I'm sorry for calling you a mouse alright!?"

"Apology accepted. Now go away!" Fina's voice rose above her customary whisper, almost to a yell.

"No!" Fred said stubbornly and grabbed her arm. "I'm not going anywhere until you stop acting like a brat and actually accept my-"

The words died on Fred's lips. When he grabbed Fina's arm, she gave him such a fierce look of anger that her blue eyes almost looked electric. He was so distracted by them that he didn't see her foot rear up until it made contact with his shin.

"Ow! Dammit Fina!"

"Just leave me alone already!" She shrieked.

Fina then took off at a run and with a loud curse Fred chased after her. She was going to accept his apology if it was the last thing he did. He wasn't a bully, he wasn't a jerk, and he was going to make her see that! She might have been fast, but he was faster.

"You forget I'm on the football team." He chuckled, easily catching up to her yet again. "There's no way you can outrun me."

Fina gave him another blaze of a look and doubled her speed. Fred was admittedly taken aback. He ran faster as well, determined to catch her, but unfortunately she had a definite lead on him. Fred maintained his focus though and kept running. People were giving them odd looks but Fred ignored them all and zeroed in Fina. She glanced back towards him and when she saw that he was gaining, she suddenly changed directions and ducked into a nearby alley. Fred followed, close behind her.

"I could do this all day Fina!" He called after her. "And I'm not stopping until you talk to me!"

Fred smiled in relief when he saw a chain link fence looming up ahead of her. Even if she tried climbing it, he would catch her before she even made it halfway-

Without even breaking her pace, and still holding her books in one arm, Fina jumped off a trashcan, a dumpster, swung off the fire escape, and leapt over the fence. Fred's jaw literally dropped. She shot him one triumph look and slowed to a fast walk. Fred grit his teeth, refused to give up, and attempted to do the same thing she did. He scraped his hand and nearly fell on his face, but he made it over the fence.

Fina looked shocked for one moment before she took off running again. Fred laughed and continued to chase her. They zig zagged through the alleys and streets, jumping over dumpsters, scaling fire escapes, and even dodging through traffic. Adrenaline was pumping through Fred's veins and he couldn't stop smiling. He hadn't gotten this much of a work out since sports camp. Forget mouse, Fina was like a freakin' cheetah with this kind of speed.

Fina knocked over a couple of trashcans trying to trip him up. Fred leapt over them and paused. He realized what direction she was going in and headed into a smaller alley way for a shortcut. Climbing onto the fire escape, he ran until he spotted her below him. He waited until she was in the perfect position before he leapt down.

"Gotcha!" He yelled triumphantly.

But he had miscalculated and instead of landing in front of her like he planned, he collided with her sending them both crashing into a pile of trash. Even more embarrassing, he had landed so that he was completely on top of Fina, his body blanketing her petite frame.

"Sorry," He groaned leaning up on his forearms. "I didn't mean to crash into you like that. Are you… okay?"

Again Fred was rendered speechless. For the first time since he met her, Fina's bangs were out of her face revealing sky blue eyes. But those eyes were teary and wide with terror and she was trembling in fear.

"Whoa, whoa take it easy!" Fred quickly got off of her. "I- I was just messing with you. I didn't mean to actually hurt you or anything."

He reached down to help her up, but she flinched, bringing her arms over her head.

"Please don't hit me!" She cried.

"I'm not gonna hit you I swear!" Fred yelled getting frustrated. What the heck was wrong with this girl? "Look, I was just trying to convince you that I'm not a jerk."

He grabbed her arm and hoisted her up to her feet. She stumbled and against his chest, but then quickly righted herself again. She sniffled and lowered her head again but at least she stopped crying.

"See? You're fine. Just a little banged up that's all." He let go of her arm, but then frowned when he realized his palm was sticky with blood. "Huh, I guess I cut myself on the fire escape or something."

When he looked back at Fina though, he spotted a long gash on her forearm, dripping with blood.

"Crap." He mumbled. "I guess I landed on you harder than I thought."

"It's fine." Fina mumbled, gathering her scattered books. "I only live a few blocks from here. I have Band-Aids at home."

"Yeah but I'm closer." Fred grabbed her books from her. "Come on, it's not far. My mom should have a first aid kit at home."

Fina stuttered a protest but Fred also grabbed her bag off her shoulder and started walking. They headed to his place walking in awkward silence. She trailed behind him like a ghost and he kept having to crane his head to make sure she was still following him. Fred made a noise of impatience and grabbed her wrist, pulling her in step with him.

"You're getting blood on my wrist." Fina muttered.

"You started it." Fred shrugged. "Besides this is your blood remember?"

He glanced down just in time to see the barest of smiles flicker across Fina's face. They reached his house and he led them into the kitchen.

"Go ahead and sit down." He said throwing her books on the table. "I'll be right back with the first aid kit."

Fina did what he said, being careful not to get blood on anything. Fred shrugged off both their bags and went into the hall closest. Just like always there were several first aid kits stacked on the bottom shelve. His mom was a nurse so there were plenty of these on standby. He came back into the kitchen and pulled a chair up next to Fina. Opening up the first aid kit, he found gauze, bandages, a water bottle, and antiseptic ointment.

"Here, give me your arm."

Fina did so obediently and he winced with guilt. The sleeve of her sweatshirt was ripped and spotted with blood.

"Man you really got cut up." He mumbled wiping some of the blood away with a cloth. "Again, I'm so so sorry about this. I was just trying to show you that I'm not such a bad guy."

Fina's eyes flickered towards his for a moment but she didn't say anything. After Fred got most of the blood cleared he was relieved to see that the gash wasn't as deep as he thought it was. He also noticed that there were several scars on her arm. _Wow she must do a lot of parkour or something,_ he thought. The thought made him chuckle a little.

"What's so funny?" Fina asked.

"Nothing really, I just never took you for an athletic type." He smiled. "How come you're not on the track team?"

"I don't do sports. Or teams." She said quietly, wincing as he applied the antiseptic. "How do you know how to do this?"

"My mom's a nurse so she's always bringing home first aid kits. And she was always patching up my brothers and me. We played sorta rough when we were kids." Fred chuckled at the memory. One time, his mom had to give him home made stitches after a fight for the remote.

"I guess I was wrong about you." Fina admitted with a smile. "You aren't a bad guy. You seem like a very nice guy."

"But not as nice as Joe right?" Fred asked with a teasing smile.

Fina's smile dropped and she turned away with a bright blush on her face. "I-I don't know what you mean."

"Uh-huh, sure you don't." Fred rolled his eyes. "Come on, I'm his best friend. Don't think I haven't notice you trailing behind him like a puppy."

Fina quickly stood up. "I should really go! It's getting late and it's my turn to make dinner at home."

"Wait! Let me finish bandaging you up first." Fred laughed and finished tying of the bandage. "Besides, I can walk you if you want."

"N-no. I'd rather walk." Fina quickly gathered her things and headed to the door. "But um… thank you, Fred. See you… around."

And with that Fina practically fled from his house. Fred shook his head with a chuckle until his stomach growled loudly. Now that the adrenaline had worn off he was absolutely famished.


	5. Freshman Year: Halloween Party Part I

**A/N- This was going to be one chapter but when I hit the 2000+ mark I decided to break it up into two chapters. Read, enjoy and review please.**

September had passed with agonizing slowness with the day to day drudgery of school, homework, and after school activities. But then October came and the dullness brightened into shades of orange as Halloween approached. All over the school everyone talked about their plans, costumes, movie nights, and even a few of the brave (but unfortunately uncool) teens discussed going trick or treating.

And now, on the night of Halloween, children in colorful costumes ran through the streets yelling for candy while parents and reluctant older siblings followed. Lighted jack-o-lanterns lined the streets and almost every other house and store front had fake spider webs in the windows.

Fred squirmed in his seat as Joleena put the finishing touches on his zombie make up. He was at Kevin's house with the other team members and cool kids getting ready for a big Halloween party. It was a pretty exclusive party, but Fred managed to secure an invite for Joe and Sam.

Joleena moved the makeup brush to a spot on his neck causing him to laugh and squirm again.

"Ugh, stay still." Joleena pursed her lips in concentration. "This is hard enough as it is."

Fred stifled another laugh. "But I thought girls were supposed to be good at makeup. You sure wear enough of it."

"I don't wear that much." Joleena huffed.

"Please, you're wearing like two pounds of eye shadow right now."

It was true. Currently, his fake girlfriend's eyes were covered with intense blue eyeshadow and black eye liner flaring out to her temples. He had to admit, it didn't look bad on her.

Joleena rolled her eyes. "It's for my costume duh. I haven't finished putting it on yet."

"And I bet you'll look super cute when you do put it on." Fred winked.

Joleena looked away with a small blush. "Fred, if I didn't know any better I would swear you were flirting with me."

"And if I was? Would that be a bad thing?"

"Well…" Joleena stood up and looked at him. "It would be breaking our little agreement if you were."

"Technically, there's nothing against me flirting with you." Fred stood up and leaned close to her. "As long as I don't mean it."

"Hey Joleena!" One of the cheerleader's called. "If you're done making out with your boyfriend I could use some help with my hair."

Everyone chuckled making Joleena blush harder. "Oh please, as if we'd be making out in front of all of you."

Fred laughed and wrapped an arm around Joleena's waist. "Yeah if we were gonna make out we'd do it on Kevin's bed."

There was more laughing and Kevin shot them a mock look of disgust. Fred then added in a low voice for only Joleena to hear, "Maybe we could find some alone time later."

"Playing it a little too well are we?" Joleena playfully elbowed him away and went over to the rest of the girls.

Fred watched her talk and giggle with the other girls, a genuine smile on his face. Kevin noticed and playfully nudged his arm.

"If you guys really want some privacy you two can use my parent's bedroom." He gave him a naughty wink. "Just make sure you two lovers get out before my parents get home in the morning."

Fred laughed. "Dude shut up. Me and Joleena aren't- I mean, we're just taking things slow right now."

"What the heck are you waiting for? Babe is well… babe."

"Like I said, we're taking things slow."

 _Yeah, so slow that we're not even really dating_. The thought came to him almost bitterly. He and Joleena got along great, they gave each other plenty of space when they wanted it, and there was no stupid drama between them. So why didn't they start going out for real?

"You know what Kevin?" Fred grinned as a thought came to him. "Maybe it is time for me to step things up with Joleena a little."

* * *

"Are you sure we have to go to this party?" Sam whined. "It's not too late to go back to your house and watch those pig man movies."

He was wearing a knee length green tunic with blue trimmings, brown leggings, a pointed green hat and ears, and a shield on his back. He supposed to be dressed as the hero from his favorite game series.

"But I thought you hated those movies." Joe pointed out.

His costume was a little more simple (and hopefully cooler) with a blue suit, sneakers, and a brown trench coat. He was dressed as the main character from his favorite time travel/science fiction tv series.

Sam slumped in his seat. "I do, but at least it'll be better than going to some stupid party."

Joe cast a warning look at his mom who was currently driving them to said party. In all honesty his mom was more than a little reluctant to let them go to a high school party, be she eventually gave her okay. Joe was extra careful to leave out the fact that there would be no parents at said party. She pulled up to the house and they could see lights flashing behind the black paper covered windows and the dull thump of music could be heard from outside.

"What time should I pick you boys up?" Mrs. Arthur asked as they got out the car.

"Um, midnight please?" Joe asked hopefully.

His mom gave him an unsure look, but then nodded. "Alright then, midnight but no later."

"We promise." Sam said. "And we'll be on our best behavior."

Mrs. Arthur gave a smile of approval then finally drove off. Joe adjusted his tie and took a breath. He had purposely chosen the most low-key costume he could think of so he wouldn't look like a major dork just in case he had a chance of talking to Joleena.

"You ready?" He asked Sam who looked equally nervous.

"As ready as I'll ever be." He mumbled.

Joe rolled his eyes and rang the doorbell. A chime rang out cutting through the music echoing through the house. After a few minutes the door opened and a nearly six foot zombie answered the door.

He eyed them in confusion with a small frown on his face. "Who the heck are you two supposed to be?"

"Well, I'm Joe and that's Sam." Joe said. "Um, Fred invited us?"

"Oh yeah, Fred's friends the loser and the nerd." The zombie gave them a friendly grin despite the fact he was clearly insulting them. "Come on in."

He opened the door wide and let them inside. The house was huge with blaring party music and spooky Halloween decorations. Teens from various grades were talking and flirting wearing creepy, sexy, and even goofy Halloween costumes.

"The name's Kevin by the way." The zombie host said leading them into the living room. "You guys want a beer or something? We got plenty of them."

"Uh, no thanks." Joe said, trying not to sound lame. "We're not thirsty."

"Besides, I'm pretty sure underage drinking is still illegal." Sam muttered under his breath.

Kevin narrowed his eyes. "So you must be the little know it all nerd Fred told me about. I can see what he means about you being annoying. "

"Oh shut up Kevin," Fred, also dressed as a zombie, came up to them. "I said that he can be annoying _sometimes_. I swear you're always trying to start things."

"What can I say? Life's no fun without a little drama." Kevin smirked as his eyes followed a girl in a playboy bunny costume. "Speaking of fun…"

He trailed off and followed after her leaving the three of them alone. Sam shot Fred a glare. "Annoying huh?"

"Sometimes, okay, sometimes." Fred gave him an embarrassed smile and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Don't listen to anything that guy says. He's just jealous because I still consider you two my best friends."

"Yeah some best friend you are." Joe smirked playfully. "I had to get my mom to drop us off while you got to catch a ride with the cool kids."

Fred shrugged. "I had to get there early so the cheerleaders could do this zombie make-up. Took two hours."

"Well it looks pretty good." Sam said starting to relax a little. "Is it latex or rubber based?"

"Dude I have no idea. Joleena was the one who did it."

"Joleena?" Joe's head suddenly snapped up. He had been subconsciously looking for her this entire time. "Joleena's here?"

"Yeah she's somewhere around here." Fred waved his hand dismissively. "So anyway, what are you two supposed to be? An elf and a lawyer?"

Sam rolled his eyes indignantly. "Duh, I'm Lynx from Elf Quest IV: Journey to Atlantis. And Joe's obviously Professor Wayt from that weird sci-fi show."

"It isn't weird! It's creative and interesting." Joe protested which of course made Sam and Fred burst out laughing.

* * *

The party was filled with mostly jocks, cheerleaders, rich kids, and other popular people who would never in a million years talk to someone like Sam. And yet for some reason Fred still insisted on dragging him through the party, trying to force him to socialize. It was more than uncomfortable. No one seemed to get his costume or just ignored him and talked to Fred instead.

"You're dressed as what again?" A blonde girl named Marcie frowned and looked Sam up and down. "A… elf warrior?"

"Well Lynx isn't so much a warrior as he is a hero." Sam showed her his shield. "See this three symbols? They represent courage, heart, and-"

"Lameness." The guy next to Marcie snickered and they both laughed.

Sam flushed in embarrassment and Fred cringed.

"The game isn't that bad." He shrugged. "The sword is pretty sweet and you get to kill stuff with it."

"But it's not just about mindlessly swinging a sword around." Sam starting to get excited again. "It's about going on an adventurous quest, solving puzzles, and exploring creative environments."

"Like I said, la-ame." He and Marcie walked away laughing.

Sam's shoulders slumped in defeat. "See Fred? I told you this wasn't a good idea."

"Hey, it's not that bad." Fred smiled and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "They rag on me all the time. You just got to get used to it."

"You think I would be now." Sam sighed. "Fred, these just aren't my kind of people. We should have just stayed at Joe's and watched movies."

"Well, I'm not giving up yet. Come on, there's one more person I want you to meet."

Despite Sam's protests, Fred began dragging him over to a group of cheerleaders dressed in sexy costumes. Sam felt his stomach twist.

"Fred don't." He whispered. "You know I'm no good at talking to girls. Especially cheerleading girls. They'll hate me."

"They're not that bad. I talk to them all the time."

"Well that's because you're a jock. I'm just a loser to them."

"Just relax and be cool." Fred gave him a confident smile. "You'll be fine, you're with me remember?"

"That's what I'm afraid of." Sam mumbled.

When they reached the girls they stopped talking and eyed Sam curiously, but not in an entirely nice way. There was a mermaid, a French maid, a playboy bunny, a sexy nurse, and a belly dancer. The one that stood out the most though was a dark skinned Egyptian goddess wearing a white and gold dress, tall strapped, gold heels, and gold, blue, and red feathers hanging from her arms.

"Hey girls." Fred nodded and smiled at the Egyptian goddess. "Hey Joleena, I want you to meet Sam, one of my best friends since like second grade."

"Is this the nerdy one?" The mermaid giggled. "Why is he dressed like an elf?"

The Egyptian goddess, Joleena, rolled her eyes. "Please ignore Justine, Sam. I think your costume is… adorable."

Joleena's smile was genuine but the other girls behind her started giggling so Sam couldn't tell if she was making fun of him or not.

"Um thanks?" Sam smiled sheepishly. "I like your costume too. But it's a little confusing."

Joleena smile fell a little. "I'm sorry?"

"It's a simple mistake really." Sam adjusted his glasses, eager to be helpful. "The symbol on your front of your headpiece is a tyet which is the knot of the goddess Isis, but the way your hair straightened and the gold chains you're wearing in it are more akin to the Egyptian queen Cleopatra."

There was an awkward silence when he finished and Fred groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. Sam's smile fell as he took in the annoyed look the other girls were giving him.

"But… it still looks pretty great." He said weakly.

"Joleena ignore the little dork." The belly dancer put a hand on Joleena's shoulder and glared at Sam. "What are you even doing here? Don't you have a math club meeting to go to or something?"

The girls laughed and walked away. Joleena shot Sam a sympathetic look but went with them.

"Told you this was a stupid idea." Sam mumbled.

"Hey look on the bright side." Fred shrugged. "They only made fun of your costume once."


	6. Freshman Year: Halloween Party Part II

**A/N- Sorry for lack of Joe in the last chapter. Here he is :)**

After Fred took Sam away to try and socialize with the popular kids, Joe did some mingling of his own. At least, he was pretending to mingle, but he was really looking for Joleena. Tonight was definitely the night he was going to talk to her. He would just play it cool and strike up an easy conversation and Joleena would see what a cool and friendly guy he was. And with every person he talked to Joe could practice and be ready to talk to Joleena when he found her. But there was just one problem…

"I'm sorry, what was your name again?" The girl he had been talking to for the past fifteen minutes asked.

"Joe." He said, trying to hide his annoyance. "My name is Joe, Rebecca. We have the same math class remember?"

"Oh yeah." Rebecca glanced down at her phone. "You must be that quiet kid that sits in the back."

"Actually I sit in front of you and I talk all the time."

"Uh-huh, right." Rebecca said absently.

Joe huffed in annoyance and moved away from her. Usually he had no problem making friends, but he had absolutely nothing in common with these people. He made his way to the punch bowl which had a floating ice hand in it and filled his cup.

He took a sip and shuddered. "Man this is tart. How much limeade did Kevin put in this?"

Still, it was pretty tasty so he kept drinking and leaned against the wall to watch the party. There was no sign of Joleena anywhere so he took out his cell phone and started texting.

 **Hey Fina, how's your night going?** He texted.

 **Alright I guess.** She texted back. **I'm doing the dishes. How's the party?**

 **Kinda boring. I wish you were.**

Joe wasn't just trying to be nice, he really did like hanging out with Fina. Once you got past her crippling shyness and the fact she was so quiet she could blend into a wall, she was actually a pretty cool person to hang out with. He had invited her to the party, but she wouldn't even consider it.

 **Right, we both know if I was there everyone would be calling me Raggedy Ann or Dorothy.** Fina texted. **Haha, thanks but no thanks.**

Joe chuckled. **Aww, but I think you'd look cute dressed as either one. You already have the pigtails for it.**

 **So your jock friend Fred tells me. _**

"Joleena, don't listen to that nerd. He totally doesn't know what he's talking about."

At the mention of Joleena's name, Joe's head snapped up and he forgot all about texting Fina. Joleena, dressed beautifully like an Egyptian goddess, was standing by the punch bowl with some other girls. She sighed and toyed with her headdress.

"Ugh, it's just that it took me forever to get my hair this straight." Joleena complained. "And it's starting to give me a headache."

"Um, I think you look beautiful Joleena." Joe smiled, going over to her. "But then again you always look beautiful."

Joleena turned towards him and looked him up and down. "Um thanks. Who are you exactly?"

"Joe." Joe felt his heart pounding in his chest. "You, um, saved my life in French class last week."

"Oh right. I remember." Joleena gave him a small smile then went back to talking to her friends. "So anyways…"

Joe's smile fell. Just like that she had forgotten he was there. He took another drink of his punch and tried again.

"I really like your costume." He said loudly, trying to cut through her conversation. "You're the goddess Isis right?"

Joleena looked surprised and completely turned her back on her friends. They shot Joe a glare but he didn't care, Joleena was actually smiling at him!

"That's right!" She grinned. "A lot of people thought I was Cleopatra. How'd you figure it out?"

"I recognized the symbol and the feathers." Joe's head felt light with happiness and he took another sip of punch. "I used to read a lot of books about ancient Egyptian myths. Your costume looks a lot like the illustrations of Isis. She always wore a lot of gold and feathers."

" _Oui,_ I remember those books. The art was always my favorite part."

Joe beamed at her. "Really? Mine too."

Actually it was the stories about magic that were really his favorite part. As a matter of fact when he was ten he used to be obsessed with magic, buying any book or movie he could about it. But he used to be made fun of it so much that he gave it up when he was twelve. But there was no way he would tell Joleena any of that.

"Come on Joleena," One of the girls dressed as a playboy bunny nudged her arm. "Let's go find the guys."

Oh no, Joe was going to lose her if he didn't keep up the flow of conversation. "You know Joleena, I used to read a lot about Isis. In one of my favorite books she was like, the patron goddess of time travel. Even though that really doesn't make a lot of sense when you think about it."

Joe was starting to ramble but he couldn't stop. "I mean, the ancient Egyptians believed in magic and the afterlife but none of the books I read said anything about time travel. It was still a good book though. I guessed if they believed in magic they could believe in time travel too."

"Uh…I guess so…" Joleena looked utterly confused and Joe felt his face heat up in embarrassment. Her friends laughed and they walked away.

"Great, just great." Joe grumbled, pouring himself more punch. "I finally get the chance to talk to the girl of my dreams and start rambling about stupid stuff. Way to go Joe."

He drunk the cup of whole cup of punch in under a minute and poured himself another cup. "It's okay. It's cool. I'll just wait for a bit, get her alone, and try again. Easy."

Joe's phone vibrated and when he glanced down he saw it was Fina again.

 **So what are you dressed as?** She asked.

Joe blinked the screen into focus so he could text her back. **Character named Doctor Wayt. U wouldn't no who that is tho.**

 **Isn't he from that time travel sci-fi show? I used to watch it all the time :)**

"Really?" Joe found himself smiling. "I thought I was the only one who watched it."

He glanced up to see if Joleena was still around and saw that she was still talking to her friends. Her eyes flickered over to him for a brief second. Joe smiled hopefully and started to wave, but then then Joleena turned away and she and her friends started laughing. Joe sighed and went back to texting Fina. Time. He would just buy some time then he could try again.

* * *

While Sam went to go sulk in the corner, Fred went to go look for Joleena. If there was anyone who could make someone cool, it would be her. Not that Fred cared whether or not Sam was considered cool, but it would probably prevent poor Sam from getting bullied all the time.

 _And… maybe I wouldn't mind talking to Joleena for other reasons._ Fred thought to himself with a small smile.

He found her coming out of the bathroom with a couple of girls, all with a fresh coats of make up on. Joleena smiled when she saw him and came over.

"Hey babe, enjoying the party?" She asked.

"It's alright I guess. I just haven't really seen you all night though." Fred grinned and wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her closer. "Maybe we should change that."

"Fred," Joleena giggled with a small blush. She took a quick look around and lowered her voice. "What are you doing? This a little much don't you think?"

"Relax Jay, I'm just messing with you." Fred reluctantly let her go but continued to smile at her. "Hey do you think you can do me a favor? I know Sam can be a little… socially awkward, but he really is one of my best friends. Do you think you can work your magic and smooth things over with him so the others will be cool with him too?"

Joleena shrugged. "Um… I could try but I think you're over estimating my popularity a little. Sam seems like a nice guy but you know how vicious are _friends_ can be."

"Aww come on babe. You're like, way hotter and cooler than even some of the senior girls. There's gotta be something you can do."

"Okay, okay." Joleena giggled. "If you're going to flatter me so much then I guess I have no choice do I?"

"Thanks babe, you're the best."

Before Fred realized what he was doing, he leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss. They both froze at the lip contact, completely caught off guard by their first real kiss despite pretending to go out for months now.

Fred broke the kiss first and took a step back. "S-sorry. I guess I shouldn't have-"

"N-no it's fine." Joleena gave him a small smile. "Tell you what, how about I sit with you and your friends at lunch next week? That's got to do something right?"

"Sure, sounds great! Actually, my other friend Joe is here. Maybe you could meet him too?"

Joleena opened her mouth to answer but someone called her from the other side of the room. She gave them a quick wave and turned back to Fred. "The senior girls are calling me over, but maybe later."

"Alright, I'll go find him then." Fred's eyes darted to her lips but he didn't kiss her again. "Later babe."

"Later Fred." Joleena gave him a wink then walked away.

* * *

 **How are you still doing dishes? It's been over an hour.** Joe texted. **How many people live in your house?**

 **Just me and my step parents…. I was just too busy to do the dishes earlier.** Fina replied. **Still having fun at the party?**

 _Well, my head is spinning and I humiliated myself in front of my crush._ Joe thought but instead he texted, **Still kinda bored. Fred and Sam ditched me earlier and I don't really know anyone here.**

 **Lol. That shouldn't be a problem for you though. You're really funny and nice and stuff. Who wouldn't want to be friends with you?**

Joe smiled. Despite being embarrassed and the constant buzzing in his head, talking to Fina had made the night not completely horrible. Speaking of buzzing, Joe noticed that his punch glass was empty again and went to go fill it.

"There you are!" A blurry, irritated elf walked up to him. "I've been looking all over you!"

"Wha?" Joe blinked the elf into focus and realized it was Sam. "Oh hey, how've you been buddy?" The words came out half slurred but he barely noticed.

Sam's frown deepened. "What's wrong it with you? Have you been drinking?"

"Pfft no." Joe rolled his eyes. "I haven't even touched a beer. I've just been drinking punch all night."

"Let me see that." Sam took the punch from him and took a tentative sip. "Joe! This punch is spiked! It has alcohol in it!"

"What? No way!" Joe quickly took the cup back. "I mean, sure there's a lot of limeade in it, but there's no way there's alcohol in it."

"Oh really? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Sam held up his hand and Joe leaned forward, the digits going in and out of focus. He groaned and poured the punch back into the bowl.

"Told you." Sam sighed. "Now can we please find Fred, call your mom, and get out of here? This isn't the party for us."

"How would you know? You've never even been to a party." Joe mumbled looking around the room. "I don't know where Fred is. I lost sight of him while you two were mingling or whatever. How'd that go by the way?"

"Terrible."

"Oh."

The two of them stood against the wall together while everyone else danced and had fun. The blurriness was starting to abate but the buzzing in Joe's head was persistent. He actually thought he was hallucinating when he saw Joleena walking up them.

"Hey guys." She gave them a dazzling smile, mostly directed at Sam. "You're Sam right? Fred's friend?"

"I'm Joe!" Joe burst out before Sam could answer. "W-we met before remember?"

Sam gave him a weird look but Joleena giggled. "Um yeah, you're the funny one who talks a lot. I definitely remember you."

Joe felt his heartbeat pick up and he couldn't help but grin. She actually called him funny! Sure it was because he ended up babbling the last time he spoke to her, but at least she called him funny.

Joleena turned her attention back to Sam. "So anyways Sam, I wanted apologize for earlier. I'm sorry my friends were so mean to you, they can be pretty harsh sometimes."

"Trust me, I know." Sam mumbled irritably, but managed to smile at her. "But I guess it was nice of you to come over and say that."

"Hey, you found my friends." Fred came up to them with a large smile and draped an arm across Joleena's shoulders. "I'm glad you guys finally met. Now we can all hang out together."

"You guys know each other?" Joe smiled hopefully. If Fred knew Joleena then that meant she would start hanging out with them, which meant Joe could keep talking to her and-

"Yeah. Did I forget to tell you guys? Joleena's my girlfriend."

 _Girlfriend!?_ Joe could have sworn his heart stopped beating. Girlfriend? Joleena was Fred's girlfriend? This was worse than worse than just finding out that Joleena had a boyfriend. Because she was dating his best friend, Joe had absolutely no chance of asking her out even if they broke up.

"Um, I'm getting some food." Joe said quickly moving away from them.

He went to the other side of the room where the food table was just to get some distance between them. He actually considered drinking more punch, but instead he pulled out his phone to text Fina. It took him a while because he was starting to feel dizzy again.

 **Hey you still up?** He texted.

 **Yeah, just working on some sketches. U?**

 **I was just wondering something…** Joe looked up and saw Fred with his arm still around Joleena's shoulders. Sam said something that made the three of them laugh and Joe turned away quickly. **Fina, do you want to go out with me?**


	7. Freshman Year: Double Dates and Reveals

**Monday:**

Joe felt anxious all the way to school on Monday. He had a major hangover on Sunday so it wasn't until this morning when he checked his phone and realized exactly what he had done. Now he had to face Fina and tell her that the text was a mistake.

"Aw man she's probably going to cry." He mumbled to himself. "I'm such an idiot."

He walked into the school and his anxiety doubled. Any minute now Fina would walk up to him with that shy smile of hers and tag along with him like a love sick puppy. She probably never even had a guy say that he liked her, let alone ask her out.

"Hey Joe. Feeling better?" Sam asked when he reached their locker.

"No," Joe sighed and started getting his books. "Sam, if I tell you something do you promise not to get upset?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"I um… sorta asked Fina out by text message." Joe mumbled.

Sam smirked. "Well it's about time. Fred and I totally saw it coming."

"No you don't understand," Joe rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "It was… sort of an accident."

Sam's smile instantly fell. "What?"

"I was half buzzed, you remember! I didn't know what I was doing." Joe fell back against his locker. "It's not that I don't like her or anything, I just don't know if I like her that way."

"Well you better decide. It isn't right to mess with her like that."

"I know. I know. I just don't want her to cry or hate me."

"She should hate you." Sam mumbled irritably. "Everyone can see she has a huge crush on you."

"Shh, here she comes."

Joe tensed as Fina walked towards them to her locker. She didn't seem particularly extra happy he noted. But then again she may have been trying to play it cool like he was.

"Good morning Joe. Good morning Sam." She said softly.

"Morning Fina." Sam smiled back, then nudged Joe.

"Um, morning Fina." Joe waited for her to say something about the text but she went on exchanging books for her locker. "So… how are you?"

"Fine." She smiled. "You?"

"I'm good. Good."

There was an awkward silence as Joe waited for her to say more. But then warning bell rang and Fina just left for class without saying anything. Joe stared after her completely flabbergasted.

"She didn't say anything." Joe said. "I asked her out and she didn't even say anything."

"Maybe she didn't see your text yet." Sam suggested with a shrug. "Whatever the case you better figure it out soon before you hurt the poor girl."

"Alright I'll say something after class."

"You better." Sam gave him another look before hurrying off to class and Joe did the same.

He took a seat next to Fina just as the final bell rang. Like always she gave him a small shy smile, but immediately went back to sketching. Joe frowned. Did she really not see the text or was she blowing him off completely?

"Alright class," the teacher clapped her hands to their attention. "I hope you all finished the assigned chapters because I want you to get with your partners and complete questions… twenty-five through forty-seven from your work packets."

Joe quickly leaned over to Fina. "Wanna be partners?"

"Um, sure. We've been partners so far haven't we?"

"Uh, yeah that's right." Joe frowned at her lack of enthusiasm. "Are you mad at me or something?"

Fina looked at him surprise. "What? Of course not. Why would I be mad at you?"

"No reason." Joe awkwardly cleared his throat and pulled out his packet. "Um, let's get to work."

The two of them worked quietly for the first forty five minutes of class without really talking about anything but the book. Joe was now completely sure that she hadn't seen the text. Otherwise Fina would have been all over him right? So maybe since she hadn't already seen, Joe could say that it was Fred or Sam who sent it as a joke and he would be off the hook. He just had to mention it first before she did.

"So you'll never believe what happened," Joe said with a small nervous laugh. "Sam and Fred took my phone and-"

"Asked me out pretending it was you?" Fina said softly. "Yeah I kinda figured that out on my own."

"Uhh," Joe blinked in surprise. "Y-you did?"

Fina nodded and lowered her head, causing her hair to fall over her eyes. "I may not talk much, but I am aware of what's going on around me."

Joe frowned. "And just what do you think is going on Fina?"

"Well, I know you guys are only hanging out with me because you feel sorry for me. That's the same reason why I know you would never actually ask me out. No one would."

"That's not true." Joe said quickly. "Yeah you're quiet, but you're also really nice and you can be funny when you want to be. Any guy would totally want to date you."

"You're lying." Fina smiled. "But that's sweet of you to say."

"No it's true. Any guy would kill to have a girlfriend like you." Joe sighed and leaned back in his seat, thinking about Joleena. "I know I would."

Fina turned bright red and Joe realized what he just said. And… all of it wasn't a total lie. Fina was totally nice and kinda cute when she smiled or when her hair wasn't in her eyes.

"Fina, I know the text was a mistake but," Joe paused to consider what he was about to do, but decided to go for it anyway. Joleena was now completely off limits to him so why not? "Do you want to go out with me? For real this time."

Fina stared at him for a long moment and for a second Joe was afraid she was going to say no. But then, she gave him that small sweet smile of hers and nodded.

* * *

Fred was never the kind of guy to pay attention in class, but today his mind seemed to be really distracted. Ever since the party he still wasn't sure if he really liked Joleena or if he just liked pretending to be her boyfriend. And even worse, he couldn't tell if she even liked him that way.

As soon as the bell for lunch rang Fred rushed out of the classroom to meet Joleena in the hallway. As usual she was already surrounded by a bunch of girls and even a few guys.

"Hey babe," He smiled as the crowd automatically parted for him. "Ready for lunch? We're eating with my friends today remember?"

"Actually I have a better idea." Joleena smiled and led him away from the others. "Jackie and was thinking we could go to that Chinese place across the street for lunch. She has some pictures of her trip to Aspen."

"Nope, today is the day you finally agreed to eat lunch with my friends and I'm not letting you get out of it." Fred grinned and wrapped his arm slightly around her waist. "It's gonna be fine. Stop being so nervous."

"I'm not nervous." Joleena pouted. "I'm just selective about who I hang out with."

"Well don't be. My friends may not be part of the popular crowd, but they're totally awesome to hang out with. You'll see."

After they got their food from the lunch line, Fred led her to the table where Joe, Sam, and Fina were sitting.

"Hey guys," Fred grinned sitting down and pulled a chair out for Joleena. "Look who finally decided to eat lunch with us."

Sam gave Joleena a polite smile and wave but Joe immediately starting choking on his milk.

" _Bonjour_." Joleena gave them a halfhearted smile. "It's nice to see you all again."

Fina made a move like she was about to bolt but Joe put his hand on top of hers and quickly whispered something in her ear that seemed to calm her down. She settled back into seat and gave Joe a small smile.

Fred smirked. "You two seem awfully cozy. Did you guys finally admit that you two like each other?"

Joe and Fina both blushed and Fred's smiled grew. "No way! Are you two actually going out now?"

"Um, yeah." Joe shrugged sheepishly. "It sorta just happened during first period."

"Seriously?" Sam mumbled irritably. "Unbelievable."

"Oh don't be jealous Sam." Fred chuckled and draped an arm around Joleena's shoulders. "We'll get you a girlfriend too. Riley from Algebra I might be interested or maybe I can hook you up with a cheerleader."

"No thanks." Sam scoffed. "I don't have time for a girlfriend. As a matter of fact I have another assignment to work on so I think I'll finish my lunch in the library."

Fred frowned as he watched him leave. "What's wrong with him?"

"You know how Sam is, he always stresses about school." Joe said. "So um, Fred… you never told us how long you and Joleena have been dating."

"Since the summer actually." Joleena smiled. "Fred and I met at the Brooklyn Division Sports Camp."

"Yeah my friend Kevin hooked us up." Fred grinned as a sudden thought came to him. "Hey! You know what we should do? The four of us should totally go on a double date this Friday!"

"We should!?" Joe and Joleena said at the same time, neither of them looking too thrilled at the idea.

"Of course we should, it'll be fun." Fred insisted. "Right Fina?"

Fina jumped in surprise and looked at Joe. "I-I don't know. I don't think Joe really-"

"No, Fred's right. It might be fun." Joe smiled. "Let's do it. Dinner and a movie?"

"How about just dinner? I have cheerleading practice early Saturday morning." Joleena said.

"Cool. Ray's at seven-thirty it is." Fred grinned excitedly. "I can't wait."

* * *

 **Friday:**

"Geez how long does it take girls to get ready?" Fred grumbled to Joe as they waited outside of Ray's. "I'm starving."

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Joe mumbled distractedly.

Fred raised an eyebrow. "You okay dude? You've been acting weird all week."

"What?" Joe shook his head. "No, no I'm fine. I guess I'm just nervous because this is my first date."

"It's no big deal." Fred shrugged. "I've been on a bunch of double and group dates before. It's almost not a date at all."

Suddenly Fred's phone vibrated and he looked down to see a text from Joleena.

 **Hey, sorry I'm late but I'm on my way now.** She texted. **Keri came over and I lost track of time.**

Fred scoffed and texted back, **Geez Jay, Joe and I have been waiting for like twenty minutes! I'm starving!**

 **Lol, you're always starving. I'll be there in ten.**

"So Joleena's finally on her way." Fred mumbled. "Wanna go ahead inside and order?"

"Nah, I think I'll wait for Fina. She should be on her…way…"

Joe's voice trailed off and when Fred followed his gaze he gasped in shock. Fina was walking towards them looking completely different. Despite the cold weather she was wearing a knee length, flowery skirt, dark pink leggings, a blue shirt, and a pink jacket, all fitting her petit form nicely. And finally her hair was loosened from it's usually ratty braids and held back from her face with a head band.

Fina bit her lip nervously and smiled at them. "Do I… look okay?"

"Yeah," Joe grinned. "Fina you look absolutely amazing. I mean, I've never seen you look so- you look really- and your hair is so-"

"Yeah, who knew you actually had eyes." Fred snickered.

Fina pursed her lips, but there was a playful spark in her eyes. "Thank you Fred. You look very…clean. Who knew you actually had a shower at home."

Joe snickered and Fred was momentarily speechless, but kinda proud. There was the sound of heels and he turned to see Joleena coming towards them. If Fina looked cute then Joleena looked hands down gorgeous. She was wearing a dark blue shirt-dress with a wide white belt, hoop earrings, and her hair was loose and wavy down her back. Even Joe was staring at her and practically drooling.

"Well are we going in or are you just going to stare at me?" Joleena giggled.

Fred quickly opened the door and let her in. "After you."

Joleena let out another flirty giggled which automatically died when she went inside.

"This?" She frowned. "This is the pizza place you told me about Fred?"

"Yeah, this is it. Pretty awesome huh?"

"Awesome isn't quite how I'd put it." Joleena mumbled.

The four of them took a booth near the back and ordered a large pepperoni with four sodas. Conversation was… awkward. Fina of course barely spoke and when she did she mostly talked to Joe and Joleena seemed too preoccupied with how greasy the table was to contribute to the conversation. So it was mostly Fred and Joe talking with two pretty girls by their sides.

 **Are you just as bored as I am?** Fred texted Joleena as Joe complained about Earth Science class.

 **Oui.** Joleena responded. **Does Fina really never talk that much or does she just not like me?**

 **Trust me, she's just quiet. Lol.**

 **And half the time your friend Joe keeps staring at me. It's kind of awkward.**

Fred glanced up and noticed that Joe's eyes did flicker to Joleena a lot. Not that he could blame him though. Joleena was pretty gorgeous and Fred was used to other guys staring at his fake girlfriend by now.

 **Well duh, it's because you're freakin' gorgeous babe. ;)**

Joleena giggled out loud causing Joe to stop talking and everyone to look at her.

"Sorry." She giggled and nudged Fred's shoulder. "Fred was distracting me."

"Because I'm so awesome and funny." Fred winked.

Fina rolled her eyes and whispered something to Joe which made him bust out laughing and he whispered something back to her.

"Aww aren't you two just adorable?" Fred teased.

"Shut up." Joe blushed and grabbed Fina's hand. "Come on Fina, let's look at the dessert case. Give these two love birds some privacy."

As soon as they left Fred took the opportunity to slide closer to Joleena and wrap his arm around her shoulder. "Sorry this double date is so lame. Usually Joe is a lot more interesting. I think he's nervous because Fina's his first real girlfriend."

"Oh I don't mind." Joleena smiled. "This date isn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be."

"Well…" Fred leaned closer to her. "Maybe next time it could just be me and you. Like a real date or something."

"Real date?" Joleena sighed and took his arm off her shoulder. "Fred, I think we have to get some things straight here. I like you, I like you a lot, but… I just don't want to enter an actual relationship right now."

"Oh." Fred's smile fell before he could stop it. He quickly pasted it back on though. "Yeah, yeah me neither. I was just saying if you wanted to go on a real date I'd be cool with it, but it's whatever. I don't care either way."

Joleena gave him a pitying look though like she didn't believe him. "Uh-huh. Look Fred, if things between us are getting too personal for you…"

"No, no I'm good." Fred said quickly shoving more pizza in his mouth. "I was just messing around anyway. It's no big deal."

"Uh-huh…"

It felt like forever until Joe and Fina came back to the table.

"Oh good you're finally back, Fina." Joleena stood up. "I have to go powder my nose."

"Oh, um, yes Joleena." Fina jumped back up and followed after her.

* * *

At first Joe thought the night was going to be horrible. He was going on a double date with his best friend, ex-crush, and a girl he wasn't even sure he liked that way! And even though Fina looked pretty cute, Joleena looked down right beautiful and Joe had been close to walking out on the date right then and there. But Joe was glad he stayed. He couldn't say he was as in love with Fina as he had been with Joleena, but he was definitely glad he asked her out.

"Why don't you where your hair like that more often?" Joe asked as they looked at the dessert case. "You look really cute."

"Um, I can wear it more like this if you want me to." Fina smiled.

"Yeah, actually I think I'd like that." Joe grabbed her hand and laced their fingers together. "Let's get back before Fred eats all the pizza."

"I wouldn't put it pass him." She giggled.

When they got back to the booth there was a weird tension. Fred and Joleena were sitting apart and Fred was shoving pizza in his face while Joleena sipped her soda. Both of them were completely breaking eye contact.

"Oh good you're finally back, Fina." Joleena stood up. "I have to go powder my nose."

"Oh, um, yes Joleena." Fina jumped back up and followed after her.

Joe sat across from Fred and gently nudged him. "Hey is everything alright between you and Joleena? You two seem kinda tense."

"Yeah, we're cool." Fred sighed. "But, I kind of have a confession to make. Joleena isn't really my girlfriend. We're just pretending so the popular kids will leave us alone."

Joe could have sworn his heart stopped beating for half a second. "Wh-what? You two aren't dating? You guys don't like each other?"

"Nope." Fred looked away. "We don't like each other in that way at all apparently."

Joe suddenly wanted to do backflips. Joleena wasn't off limits! Joleena wasn't off limits! Which meant that when Fred got tired of her, like he always did with girls, Joe could totally ask her out and-

Fina and Joleena came back to the booth and when she slid in next to him, Fina shyly brushed her hand against Joe's. His stomach twisted with guilt even as he smiled at her and held her hand. She hadn't been gone for five minutes and Joe was already thinking about how to hook up with another girl.

"Something wrong Joe?" Fina asked sweetly. "Your face is kind of red."

"No, no I'm fine." Joe cleared his throat and dropped a few bills on the table. "It's getting kind of late, I should walk you home."

"NO!"

Fina spoke so loudly that everyone stared at her in surprise. She cleared her throat and spoke in a more normal tone. "I-I mean, no thank you. It's not that far."

"Fina it's way too dark for you to be walking alone at night." Joe persisted. "I have to walk you."

"Yeah this is New York Fina. You could get mugged or something." Fred said.

"Or get accosted by a homeless person." Joleena muttered.

"B-but I-" Fina sighed in defeat. "Okay."

Joe was confused but he tightened his grip on her hand and they walked out of Ray's together. The night air was chilly so they walked close together to generate warmth between them. Fina was incredibly quiet and now so was Joe. All he could think about was how beautiful Joleena looked, how pretty Fina's eyes and smile were, and how cute it was that Joleena was disgusted with every little grease spot in the pizzeria. Joe felt like a complete jerk. He liked both girls. Fina was sweet and he had to admit he did feel a little sorry for her. But he still felt like he had a huge crush on Joleena despite never really talking to her. It wasn't fair to Fina.

"Well here we are." Fina said, coming to a stop in front of a small, shabby house. "Thanks for walking me home Joe. And thanks for talking me out. It was… really fun."

"Y-you're welcome." Joe sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Fina, there's something I have to tell you…"

The door suddenly banged open and a tall, lanky man with a beer gut and five o'clock shadow leaned in the doorway. He was wearing a white, dirty tank top, basketball shorts, carried a beer in one hand, and a cigarette hanging from his mouth.

"There you are Fiona." He said in a gruff, angry. "Where the hell have you been young lady? Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Sorry Larry." Fina said meekly. "I-I was out with Joe. And my name's Fina remember?"

"I don't care where you were." Larry said impatiently. "Do you have any idea how hungry I was waiting for you to come home and fix dinner? It's almost nine o'clock!"

Fina flushed angrily but lowered her head. "I turned the oven on and left it on the stove. Why didn't you ask Sierra to do it?"

"Because it ain't my job you lazy whore!" A new voice screeched from inside.

Larry's face darkened with anger and he turned his head to yell back, "Don't call my step-daughter a whore you stupid slut! She's worth ten of you!"

"Well then why don't you marry her you perv!" Sierra screamed back.

"I think you should go." Fina whispered to Joe. "This could get ugly fast."

"Are you sure I should leave you?" Joe looked at her in concern. "Fina, are you safe here?"

"And why the hell wouldn't she be safe?" Larry glared at Joe and limped down the steps towards them. "Just who the hell are you boy? Why are you sniffing around my step-daughter like a dog? She's barely thirteen."

"Fourteen." Fina sighed.

"I'm her boyfriend." Joe glared up at Larry, who had to be more than six feet tall.

"Not if I say you aren't!"

"Joe, please its fine." Fina said quickly stepping between them. "Larry, I just give me ten minutes and I'll be right in to fix your dinner."

"Make it five." Larry gave Joe another glare and headed back inside. "And don't be staying out too late, Fiona. I don't want you to end up a filthy slut."

"Yes, sir." Fina whispered. "And it's Fina."

"I don't like this." Joe frowned. "And who is that woman in there?"  
"Sierra, Larry's new wife." Fina sighed. "Promise you won't tell anyone about this at school? I get made fun of enough as it is."

"Ugh, Fina…"

"Please?" She begged, her blue eyes wide and pleading. "Please Joe, not a word to anyone, please?"

"Alright, alright." Joe tried to smile at her. "I won't tell anyone I swear."


	8. Freshman Year: Homework and Marshal Lee

Cold, nearly freezing rain was pouring over the streets of Brooklyn making the sidewalks extra slippery. Even in February New York still hadn't broken out of its winter cold spell. Unfortunately, that didn't prevent Sam from having to walk home. Joe had left school early for a doctor's appointment, and Fred had to stay after school for some reason. Normally Sam wouldn't mind waiting, but that would have meant being around the popular kids which was something that he avoided doing.

Sam sighed as his glasses fogged up for the third time. "At least I remembered to bring an umbrella."

He was almost home when he heard a weird noise coming from the alley. Weird, it almost sounded like… crying. When Sam poked his head inside to check it out, he saw a lone figure crouched by a stack of boxes.

"Fina?" Sam asked in confusion. "What are you doing?"

Fina looked up at the sound of his voice. Her wet curls were plastered all over her face and it was hard to tell with the water on her face was from tears or the rain or both.

"Hey, you can't be out in the rain like this." Sam said rushing over to her. "You could get really sick."

Fina's lips quivered. "But I can't just leave it here. It could get sick too."

"What would?" But then Sam looked down and saw that one of the cardboard boxes held inside a sleeping black kitten, shivering from the cold. "Aww, poor little guy."

"Can you believe someone just left it here?" Fina whimpered. "I can't abandoned it, but I can't take it home with me either."

Sam crouched down and shielded her with the umbrella. She was shivering just as badly as the kitten. "Did you try calling Joe? I think his little sister has a cat. I'm sure she wouldn't mind another one."

"I tried. He's not answering." Fina began to sniffle and her eyes welled up with tears. "I don't know what to do."

There was a clap of thunder making them jump. Sam bit his lip in thought. A list of homework assignments and essays were lined up waiting for him to do, but Fina was right, they couldn't just leave the kitten like that.

"Come on, we can take it to my place and figure it out from there." He said. "Joe's coming over for homework later anyway."

Fina nodded eagerly. She grabbed the kitten, cradled it in her arms, and stood up. Sam held the umbrella over both of them as they walked to his apartment.

"My mom is a freelance journalist and works at home a lot during the day so we have to keep it down." Sam warned in a whisper.

Fina gave him a small smile. "Trust me, quiet is my strong suit."

Sam chuckled and put his umbrella away before leading Fina to his room. She immediately flopped down on the floor and started stroking the kitten to try and warm it up. But the kitten wasn't the only one freezing. Fina's sweatshirt clung to her like a second skin and her hair was still dripping.

"Do you have a towel or something? The poor thing is freezing." She said.

"You look like you need one too." Sam said, shrugging off his rain jacket. "I'll be right back."

He grabbed a couple of towels from the hall closet, one big and one small. The bigger one he draped over Fina and the smaller one she took for the kitten. After a few minutes of rubbing and stroking, the kitten slowly woke up and opened one dark, blue eye. The other eye seemed to be missing or damaged. It yawned and began to roll around in the warmth of the towel.

"Well it seems to be alright." Sam smiled and sat down in front of it. "Hey little guy, that was a close call you had."

The kitten yawned and ignored his outstretched hand to lick itself instead. It did allow Sam to gently pet its head though.

"Thanks for this, Sam." Fina smiled, pulling her towel closer around her. "And not just for towel."

"It's no problem. We're friends now remember?" He smiled.

Fina blushed and occupied herself by playing with the kitten. While she did that, Sam sat at his desk to start on his homework. Every now and again he looked up to see the kitten mewling and nibbling on Fina's fingers.

"I think it might be hungry. Do you think it'll drink some milk?" He asked.

Fina nodded and nuzzled the top of the kitten's head. It mewled again and licked her nose. Sam headed into the kitchen and got out a small bowl and some milk. Lactose free milk of course. He was just putting it away when his cell phone beeped. New text message from Joe.

 **Hey, I'm at the door, let me up.**

Sam rolled his eyes. "Would it kill you guys to buzz in?"

Carrying the bowl of milk in one hand, he went to open the door for Joe.

"Hey, how was your appointment?" Sam asked, letting him inside.

"Long. And pointy." Joe mumbled rubbing the bandage on his arm. He then noticed the milk he was carrying. "Did I interrupt your breakfast or something?"

"No, your girlfriend rescued a kitten." Sam chuckled and rolled his eyes. "I swear she's like the reincarnation of Mother Theresa or something."

"Who?"

"Ugh… never mind. Come on, she's in my room."

Joe followed him back to his room where Fina was still sitting in the floor playing with the kitten. She was smiling more than Sam had even seen her, but her smile grew shy and bashful when she spotted Joe behind him.

"Here's its milk." Sam said setting down the bowl. "I hope it doesn't mind lactose free."

The kitten jumped out of Fina's arms and practically jumped into the bowl, spilling half of it on the floor. Sam cringed but couldn't help but smile at how eagerly it lapped it up.

"It's cute." Joe said, sitting next to Fina. "What's its name?"

"Uh…" Sam and Fina exchanged a look and shrugged. "We don't know. We don't even know what gender it is."

"Looks like a boy to me." Joe smiled and reached a hand out towards it, but it hissed and ran back into Fina's lap.

Fina giggled and stroked its head. "I think he looks like a Marshal. What about Marshal Lee, Sam?"

"Sounds good to me. Now maybe we should get started on our homework?" He said opening up one of his binders. "Do you still need help in math Fina?"

"Yes," Fina sighed and moved closer to Sam.

Over the next hour the three of them did their homework together. Sam helped Fina with her math homework while Joe struggled with English. Every now and again Sam had to gently move Marshal Lee back into Fina's lap when he wandered over to him. It was cute the first few times, but it soon got distracting.

"And then I multiply… here?" Fina asked hesitantly.

"No here." Sam corrected her gently. "Remember, you have to multiply left to right okay?"

"Got it," Fina wrote something down then looked back up at him. "So the answer is… x=37?"

"That's right!" Sam smiled and looked over at Joe. "How are you doing over there, Joe?"

"I'm dying!" Joe groaned dramatically and flopped on the bed. "Finaaaaa!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming." Fina giggled.

Before Sam could protest she placed Marshal Lee in Sam's lap and bounced over to sit on the bed next to Joe. Sam watched them curiously. Sure they smiled at each other and acted pretty friendly, but Fina was just as friendly towards him, and they weren't even dating. But what did Sam know? It wasn't like he was dating anyone. Still, he was pretty curious…

"So how are you two doing?" Sam asked. "Relationship wise, I mean."

"Fine." They answered without looking up.

Sam raised an eyebrow, but decided to let it go. Just then his phone starting ringing and when he checked the caller id he saw it was Fred.

Sam pressed answer and put the phone to his ear. "Hey, you coming over soon?"

"Sam, you guys got to help me!" Fred said urgently in a tense voice. "I was able to get away for a minute, but she'll coming looking for me at any minute!"

"What's going on? Who's after you?"

"Joleena!" Fred practically yelled. "She's got me trapped here at the school, setting up for some stupid school event. It's taking forever and she's driving me crazy!"

There was some indistinct French yelling in the background and Fred's voice dropped to a whisper, "Sam, please I'm begging you. Bring Joe and Fina before I strangle this woman!"

The French yelling got louder and suddenly the phone hung up. Sam groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. He barely made a dent in his homework, but Fred sounded too desperate to ignore.

"Who was that?" Joe asked.

"Fred," Sam sighed and grabbed his jacket. "Come on, he needs our help at the school. Joleena's driving him crazy setting up for some school event."

"But what about Marshal Lee?" Fina asked. "We can't just leave him here. He'll think he's being abandoned again."

"He'll be fine."

Sam set Marshal Lee down but he immediately started mewling and pawing at Sam's pant leg. He forced himself to ignore it even though its mewling tugged at Sam's heart strings.

"Oh okay," Fina sighed. "I guess we'll pick this up later Joe?"

"Um, yeah sure." Joe sighed as well. "If Fred really needs us, I guess we have no choice do we?"

"And the sooner we help Fred, the sooner we can get back to doing homework."


	9. Freshman Year: Basement Confessions

"Um… a little more to the left… _non, non,_ that's too high. Now you'll have raise the right side more."

Fred sighed and started to climb down from the ladder. He thought about asking why he couldn't just lower the left side, but after three hours of doing this, he knew better. Once he reached the other side of the 12ft long banner, he untied the string and started to raise it higher.

"Don't pull it so taunt!" Joleena said angrily. "You're going to make it rip!"

"You want to come up here and do this yourself!?" Fred snapped.

He turned to look at her, but she gave him such a heated glare that he immediately turned back around again. "Sorry, Jo-Jo."

"And how many times have I told you not to call me Jo-Jo?" Joleena said irritably. "That is the most ridiculous pet name I have ever heard."

"Well maybe I could think of a better one if we were actually dating." Fred mumbled under his breath.

" _Excuse-moi?"_

"Nothing."

His phone vibrated with an incoming text message and Fred grabbed at it eagerly, almost falling off the ladder in the process. When he finally managed to get it out of his pocket he saw it was a text message from Sam: **We're here. Let us in.**

"Hey my friends are here. I'm going to let them in." Fred said quickly climbing down from the latter.

Joleena sighed impatiently and dismissed him with a wave of her hand. She glared over at the rest of the school planning committee who were just lounging around the stairwell gossiping, joking, and flirting. Fred left before she could chew them out again and headed to the front of the school. The rain outside had let up a little but it was still freezing out. Joe, Sam, and Fina stood shivering outside waiting for him.

"Thank goodness you guys are here," Fred said opening the door. "Joleena is off her rocker!"

"Let's just get this over with." Sam sighed brushing him aside and walking in.

Fred frowned and turned to Joe. "What's his problem?"

"We were doing homework." Joe shrugged. "You know how Sam is when he doesn't finish his homework."

"Well he doesn't need to be such a jerk." Fred mumbled.

They started walking down the hallway with him leading them to where the others were. Fred glanced back and noticed that Fina had her arms wrapped around herself and she was shifting uncomfortably. Fred drifted back until he was next to her. "Want my jacket? You look cold."

Fina jumped and quickly shook her head.

"You sure?"

Fina nodded. Fred shrugged indifferently and moved away from her again.

"So what are you guys doing here?" Joe asked.

"The faculty is having some dinner and they wanted the student planning committee to organize and decorate it." Fred rolled his eyes. "You know, since the bastards are too lazy to do it themselves."

"And you need us because…"

"Because the student planning committee are also a bunch of lazy bastards."

They reached the foyer where the gym was. A long table filled with decorating supplies, airless balloons, and papers were off to one side while paint and paint brushes sat in a corner. Round tables and chairs were stacked in another corner. A stenciled but colorless banner hung over the gym doors but that was the only thing set up.

"We will be here all night at this rate!" Joleena was chastising the rest of the planning committee who were just lounging in the stairwell.

"A co-ed sleepover sounds good to me baby." One of the guys laughed and everyone laughed with him.

"Relax Jo-Jo, the carvery has arrived." Fred announced.

Joleena turned towards them and her face looked mildly relieved, but the rest of the committee just glared at Joe, Sam, and Fina's arrival.

A cheerleader named Stacy gave them a nasty smile. "Sorry losers, this party is invitation only."

"Oh can it Stacy, they're probably a lot more useful than you." Joleena shot back at her and quickly rushed over to the four of them. "Thank goodness you're here, I need all the help I can get."

"No sweat, we'll be glad to help." Joe smiled. "What do you need?"

* * *

Half an around later, Joe sat on the floor with Joleena, helping her fill in the letters in the banner. Fred was finally able to cajole some of his jock friends into setting up the tables inside the gym, claiming that the girls would never be able to do it without them. The rest of the committee were forced to work on table center pieces but so far only Sam and Fina were doing it, sitting off to one side away from them.

Joleena huffed for the tenth time and glared over at the ones not working. "They elected me chairperson of this project but now they don't want to do anything. Then who'll take the blame if this isn't done? Me, that's who."

"Hey, it'll be fine." Joe said softly and patted her hand. "We got half of them working, that's something right?"

Joleena flashed him the briefest smile, making his face feel warm. " _Oui,_ I supposed you're right."

Joe's hand tightened a little over hers before he quickly removed it again. He glanced over at Fina who was sitting next to Sam, hunched over and focused on her task.

"Thank you for being here," Joleena said softly, "I know that it's mostly because of Fred, but I'm still grateful you're here."

Joe felt his chest tighten looking at her beautiful brown eyes and looked away quickly. "No problem."

They worked in a slightly awkward silence after that for about an hour until there was a resounding crash from the gym, followed by raucous laughter. Joleena swore under her breath and stood up to go investigate. After a minute she began an angry tirade entirely in French. Curious, Joe got up and went inside the gym too. His jaw dropped. The round tables which Fred and the other jocks were supposed to be setting up were in a pile in the middle of the gym floor. The guys including Fred, were banged up but trying to smother their laughter at Joleena's angry tirade. Her face was flushed and furious, but the guys kept laughing making her even angrier.

" _Incompetent, intule, debile_ idiots!" Joleena screeched. " _Je ne peux pas croire que je dois travailler avec bourriques comme vous_!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Joe quickly came to her side. "What's going on here?"

"These, these- idiots!" Joleena stabbed an accusing finger at them. "Thought that it would be a great idea to make a pyramid out of the tables and see who could reach the top first."

"Hey it was just a joke," Fred, still chuckling, raised his hands defensively. "Besides, it's not like any of them got broken. No need to get so uptight, Jo-Jo."

"I am not uptight and stop calling me Jo-Jo!" Joleena screamed.

"Hey, hey, take it easy," Joe placed his hands on her shoulders and gently turned her to face him. He gave her a reassuring smile, hoping to calm her down. "I'm sure they fix the tables okay?"

Some of the angry fire faded from Joleena's eyes and she gave a tiny nod. Someone cleared their throat and Joe looked up to see the jocks behind Fred glaring at him while Fred himself stared at them in confusion. Joe was confused why until he realized that Joleena was supposed to still be Fred's fake girlfriend and quickly dropped his hands from her shoulders.

"Uh…"

Before he could even think of an explanation, the gym doors opened and Sam cautiously poked his head inside. He spotted Joe and quickly waved him over. Joe sighed in relief and hurried to him.

"Boy am I glad to see you," Joe shook his head, "You have no idea how awkward-"

"Um, I can't find Fina." Sam said worriedly. "She's been missing for half an hour."

"What!?" Joe said sharply, "What do you mean missing? Did she go home?"

"I don't know, Stacy called her over and said something to her then Fina left down the hall. I haven't seen her since and they won't tell me what they said to her."

"Oh great." Joe mumbled. He knew it would no use to ask Stacy himself. He knew she probably liked him as much as Fina. But maybe there was one person she would listen to.

"Stacy, where is she?" Joleena asked tiredly after Joe explained to her what happened.

While the other girls looked somewhat sheepish as Joleena's stern expression, Stacy stared back at her blandly. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh really?" Joleena narrowed her eyes. "So either Sam's lying or you're lying? And which one of you has the better track record for truthfulness?"

"Ugh, get over yourself," Stacy rolled her eyes, but she wavered. "I sent her to get supplies from the basement okay? It's not my fault that Dorothy got lost."

Joe sighed in relief. "She probably did get lost down there. I'll go get her."

"No, I will." Fred mumbled and headed down the hall. "I could use a break from decorating."

* * *

Turning a corner down the hall, Fred finally came across the door that lead down to the basement. He could easily see how Fina could get lost. He couldn't even hear the others near the gym anymore. Opening the door, he eyed the old steps leading into gloomy darkness.

"Fina?" He called out cautiously, "Fina you in there?"

No answer. Fred had a sudden idea that even if she heard him, there would be no guarantee that she would speak loud enough for him to hear her.

"Fina?" He called louder. "If you're down there, you better say something or I'm leaving you down there!"

Again no answer. Fred was just about to leave when he heard the sound of something falling from deep inside. He groaned inwardly to himself and headed down the steps, letting the door close behind him with an echoing click. It was now almost completely dark except for the dull glow of the ancient overhead florescent. He finally reached the bottom of the steps and wrinkled his nose in disgust at the damp, moldy smell. Old cardboard boxes and plastic bins filled the storage shelves around him as he walked, making him feel like he was in a maze. A creepy, dark, smelly maze. An uncomfortable shiver ran up his spine making him more irritable.

"Fina!" Fred called impatiently, "Now is not the time to develop a sense of humor. Quit playing around and get out here!"

"I'm not playing." A ghostly voice answered.

An unmanly shriek escaped from Fred's lips and he spun around, his fist swinging with him and almost punched Fina in the face. The wind from his fist blew her hair back but she barely flinched.

"Fina?" Fred panted breathlessly. He took a closer look confirming that it was her and dramatically clutched his chest. "Geez, you almost gave me a heart attack!"

The tiniest smile played on her lips but she said nothing. Her arms were folded just under her chest making her oversized sweat shirt bunch up. Fred snapped his back up to her face, feeling his earlier irritation come back.

"Didn't you hear me calling for you?" He asked folding his arms. "I almost left you down here."

"Sorry," Fina whispered, lowering her eyes, "Marshal Lee ran away and I had to catch him again."

Fred's brow furrowed in confusion. "Who?"

The front of Fina's sweatshirt shifted making him jump and a kitten head popped out of the top and mewled at him.

"I couldn't leave him at Sam's house." Fina explained pushing the kitten back down. "And when Stacy sent me down here for supplies he jumped out of my shirt and-"

"Yeah yeah, I get it," Fred interrupted. "Let's just get out of here."

Fina nodded obediently and followed him as he headed back the way he came. And just like the time a few months ago when he had accidentally knocked her down, Fina trailed behind him silently like a ghost. Added with the creepy feeling the dimly lit basement was already giving him, Fred was more than uncomfortable. So, also like before, Fred reached behind him, grabbed Fina's arm, and pulled her up to walk beside him. Fina let out an irritated huff of air but didn't say anything.

"Finally," Fred sighed in relief when they reached the stairs at last. He raced up the steps and looked behind him in confusion when he noticed that Fina was still at the bottom. "What?"

"The door is closed." Fina said quietly.

"Yeah, so?"

"It's broken so it locks from the inside."

Fred's eyes widened and he snatched at the door knob, silently praying that she was wrong. It wouldn't turn. Panic started to grip him as Fred clenched the knob harder and tried turning frantically. It still wouldn't budge and when he checked his phone to see if he could call anyone, he saw that his phone had no bars. That's when Fred started yelling.

"Help!" He screamed. "Help! We're trapped! Heeeeeelp!"

"Fred," Somehow Fina's quiet yet weirdly firm voice managed to make it through his yelling. He glanced at her and saw her stroking Marshal Lee soothingly. "You're scaring Marshal Lee."

Fred gave her an incredulous look. "We're trapped in the school's creepy basement and you're worried about that stupid cat?"

Marshal Lee hissed at him but Fina merely shrugged. "Someone will find us. They're bound to come looking for you."

She sat down on one of the bins sitting on the floor and continued stroking the top of Marshal Lee's head. Fred groaned and grudgingly sat down next to her, the bin lid sinking a little under his weight.

"Don't you mean come looking for us?" He muttered, resting his chin in his hand.

"No, I meant you. They wouldn't bother looking for me."

Fred lifted his head and raised an eyebrow. "Sam was worried about you, Joleena forced Stacy to tell us where you were, Joe wanted to come looking for you, but I was the one who volunteered. So maybe you should stop playing the victim so much and realize that you do actually have friends."

Fina's eyes went wide and for a strong moment, Fred was terrified that she was going to cry. But instead she lowered her head again and he could have sworn he saw a small smile on her lips. Fred started to smile until her hair shifted and something caught his eye. There, just below her right temple was a faded, purple bruise, jarring compared to the peach hue of her skin. Fred thought back to earlier and wondered vaguely if he did accidently punch her after all.

"Hold still for a minute," Fina froze as he gently cupped her face and moved some of her hair aside to get a closer look. His eyes widened in alarm when he realized that it was definitely a bruise. "Holy crap, did I hit you for real!?"

Fina quickly snatched her face away and shook her head vigorously. "N-no. I must fallen when I was looking for Marshal Lee."

"You _must have_ fallen?"

"I fell." Fina met his confused frown with a steady and steely gaze.

Fred felt something nagging in the back of his mind, but like any time his brain tried to tell him something, he ignored it and let his hand fall. "Okay, yeah sure."

An awkward and uncomfortable silence fell between them. Fred shuffled his feet and shifted restlessly. He hated being around quiet people. He liked noise, laughing, and action, not long silences. Fina just sat there, playing with her hair and staring off into space. Even Marshal Lee seemed to have fallen asleep. Fred let out a long bored sigh hoping to rouse Fina's attention, but she didn't even look at him. He sighed louder this time and her gaze flickered toward him and away again. Fred frowned and slouched on the bin. He was desperate for some conversation, any conversation that he suddenly decided to speak first.

"I don't like my cool friends."

Fina's eyes widened in surprise and so did his. Had he meant to say that?

"I… don't like them," He continued surprising himself. "They're… so shallow. And all they do is gossip or rag on other people." His mind flashed to Stacy who sent Fina down here by herself. "And they're mean too."

Fina was quiet for a minute, still playing absently with her hair, before finally whispering, "Then why do you hang out with them?"

Fred shrugged. "Because they're cool. And they're nice to me."

"But they're mean to you friends." Fina pointed out.

Fred shrugged again. What else could he do? "I know, I try to stop them but…"

He trailed off. There was no good excuse really. Fred didn't talk bad about other people and he at least stopped some of the other guys from bullying Sam, but that wasn't much. Fina's hand moved toward him hesitantly, before briefly touching him arm in a way he supposed was meant to be comforting. When he looked up at her, he was shocked to see her smiling.

"You're not like them," She said softly. "Well, you're not mean and shallow like them."

"Thanks," Fred smiled back. "You not half bad yourself. I can see why Joe likes you so much."

At once, Fina's expression became slanted as she tilted her head, letting her hair fall like a curtain over her eyes. Her gaze was sharp and clear though between the strands of her hair

"He doesn't really like me the way you think he does," She whispered almost mysteriously. "I'm more like a pet to him. He likes someone else even though he tries to hide it."

Fred stuttered in surprise, intrigued despite himself. "W-who?"

A tiny smile twitched up the corners of her lips and the gleam in her eyes intensified. "It's a secret."

Fred stared at her a long moment, mesmerized at the sharp intensity of her blue eyes almost completely hidden by stands of curly blond hair.

Suddenly, bright light flooded the basement as the door was flung open. Fina squinted at the bright light since she was the one facing the door, and Fred could see that the glint in her eyes were tears. Before Fred could say anything, Fina had already turned away and rubbing her eyes. Fred looked back up and saw Joe in the doorway.

"There you guys are," Joe breathed a sigh of relief. "We were looking-"

"Don't close the door!" Fred said quickly jumping up. "It locks from the inside. That's how we got stuck down here in the first place."

Joe nodded and opened the door wider, careful to hold it open. Fred went up the steps and this time he could definitely feel Fina following close behind him even though she was as silent as ever.

Back in the gym hallway, everyone else had made little progress with the decorations, but at least the tables were set up inside. While they dispersed and went back to work, Fred found himself watching Fina and Joe's interaction, confused by Fina's earlier confession. And he did notice that there was a strange detachedness in the way Joe absentmindedly patted Fina on the shoulder before moving away and doing something else. His brain was still processing when he felt a soft hand on his arm and Stacy settled beside him.

"You know Fred, we were all worried when you didn't come back right away." She smiled sweetly. "We thought you got lost down there."

Fred frowned as he regarded her. Stacy was really pretty, even prettier than Joleena, funny, kinda smart, and was also the top scorer for the girls volley ball team. If Fred hadn't already been fake dating Joleena, he could have easily gone out with her. And then broken up with her when he realized how shallow and vapid she was.

"Hey, Stacy, you mind doing me a favor?" He asked.

Stacy's smile grew eager, "Sure! Anything you want, Fred."

Fred smiled back. "Quit being such a bitch to Fina or I'll tell Joleena that you keep flirting with me behind her back."

Stacy's smile dropped like a rock and Fred walked away with a small chuckle. He might catch hell from the other kids tomorrow, but for now he felt good about himself.


	10. Freshman Year: Debates

Thanksgiving break and Christmas break seemed to pass by in the blink of an eye. Valentine's day brought its usual drama with emotional and hormonal teens. April Fool's day turned some friends into enemies and Spring Break made the rest of the school year that much harder to endure.

For everyone except Sam that is. School wasn't a chore for him, it was actually something he looked forward to. Especially since he started taking AP classes. Now Sam finally felt like he was getting the challenge that his brain needed. Some guys liked going to the gym, he liked going to school.

So while everyone else agonized over final exams, Sam looked forward to taking online pre-college classes. Right now he and Joe were eating lunch outside, both of them being tired of staying inside all winter.

"I still can't believe you signed up for those classes." Joe said shaking his head. "Why would you give up summer break for more school?"

"Like I told you and Fred a million times before, it isn't just school. It's a big opportunity for me to increase my academic standing with future colleges." Sam rolled his eyes in mild annoyance. "It's the same reason I joined the debate team remember?"

"Right, that reminds me, about tonight," Joe awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, "I don't think I'll be able to make it tonight. My dad is coming back tonight and-"

"I understand." Sam mumbled, trying not sound too disappointed.

He didn't bother to remind Joe that neither he or Fred made it to any of his debate meets. And so far he had been fifteen and zero with him as the team's highest scoring debater. But then again it wasn't like it was anything new. Anything knowledge or academic related Sam always excelled.

"Hey, look who's on her way over," Joe took on a teasing tone, "your giiiirlfiiieend."

Sam felt his face heat up and he reluctantly looked in the direction that Joe indicated. Sure enough Megan was heading directly towards them. She was a girl in three Sam's AP classes and was cute with light brown hair kept back in a neat French braid, wore large square glasses much like his own, and always wore pressed jeans and blouses. They began studying together for the AP finals after midterms had passed so it was no surprise when Sam felt himself crushing on her. But that had been over before very quickly.

"I told you guys I only went on one date with her," Sam hissed to Joe as Megan grew closer, "and, there wasn't any, you know, … spark there."

"Oh yeah? Then why do you still hang out with her?"

"Because…well… we're still friends… and she's a good study partner!"

"Riiiiight."

"Hey Sam, hey Joe!" Megan said brightly when she finally reached them. "Sam, I can't wait to see your debate tonight. I'm sure you'll be amazing as always."

Despite himself, Sam gave the tiniest smile that at least someone seemed to want to go to his debate meet.

"See, Megan's excited to go." Joe grinned. "And maybe afterwards you two can go get some ice cream. It'll be like a little date."

Megan blushed and turned away to hide a smile while Sam just blushed. He cleared his throat and decided that it would be in his best interest to change the subject now.

"So where are Fred and Fina? I thought they were having lunch with us today."

Joe stopped smirking and looked mildly uncomfortable. "Fina's um… out sick today, And Fred is over there with his 'cool friends'. I think he's signing yearbooks or something."

Sam looked around and saw a group of kids huddled around one of the better picnic tables. If he stood up and craned his head a little, he could see a little of Fred's signature blue hat. A bit of envy went through Sam, but he tried to ignore it. He shouldn't be jealous just because Fred had the athletic skills and charisma to be treated like a celebrity at this school. Even though Sam thought that being well like would be cool, it wasn't like it was the greatest thing ever right?

* * *

Fred had never been so bored, tired, and irritated in his entire life. He was sitting outside with Joleena during lunch with the rest of the popular clique. His hand was starting to cramp from writing in so many peoples' year books. It still baffled him how many people knew who he was, but after all Fred had been the co-captain of a winning football team and totally crushed the competition during baseball season.

"So what are you doing for the summer?" Fred asked Joleena as they signed yearbooks.

"Oh you know, travelling with daddy, maybe a shopping trip in Paris." Joleena barely glanced at him. Instead she handed back a yearbook to a sophomore girl. "What about you?"

"Nothing much, probably lounge around the house. Watch tv and play video games." Fred mumbled. He handed back his year book to some girl and was annoyed when she handed his back with a small wink. Fred rolled his eyes and sure enough when he looked at the page she signed, it had her phone number and a flirtatious message. He glanced over to see if Joleena noticed but she was already chatting with someone else.

"Does it really not bother you that girls flirt with me right in front of you?" Fred asked her bluntly.

Joleena and the girl she was talking to both looked up in shocked surprise. Joleena raised an eyebrow in warning but Fred ignored her and kept looking at her expectantly. Joleena put on a fake smile and patted his knee.

"It's just a little harmless flirting. It's not like you are cheating on me or anything." She giggled.

"But I could dump you for someone else."

Fred didn't know why he said that, but the sharp gasp from both Joleena and the girl gave him some sort of gratification. He wasn't trying to be cruel though. Sometimes he just got tired of playing the clueless cool kid, so he messed with Joleena just to put her on edge.

"Hey, I'm just joking around," Fred laughed and threw his arm around her shoulders. "You know I love only you. Why would I want anyone else?"

"Why indeed." Joleena mumbled with a smile, but her eyes told Fred that he was in for a lecture later. "By the way, shouldn't you be eating with your friends?"

"Aw, but I'm having so much fun with you and our cool friends."

"Yeah Fred, don't go." Joleena's so called friend cooed and moved over to loop her arm's through his. She batted her false, painted eye lashes at him. "You're so much fun to have around."

Fred gave Joleena a pointed look and was met with a blank look. He just sighed in exasperation and unhooked his arm from random cheerleader number whatever.

"I'll be back," He mumbled standing up, "maybe."

With an air of annoyance Fred made his way across the courtyard over to where his actual friends were. Except, Sam was too busy talking to his _not_ girlfriend who was totally his girlfriend and Fina was nowhere to be seen. Joe waved him over and scooted to make room for him on the bench.

"Hey, what's up?" Fred sat down and stole a few fries. "I see Sammy's talking to his little girlfriend. Where's yours?"

Joe looked confused for a moment before suddenly looking evasive. "Fina's um… sick today. She may not be in for a few days."

"Oh. That sucks. So anyways, you got any plans for the summer?"

"Eh," Joe shrugged. "Not really. My mom wants me to get summer job though."

"Man that really sucks." Fred laughed. "I'm glad my parents don't make me do that kind of stuff. Maybe if you aren't too busy bagging groceries or flipping burgers we could all take a day trip to the beach."

"Haha, but I'm surprised you don't just go with your new cool friends." Joe teased lightly. "How's that going by the way? You and Joleena having fun being fakers?"

Fred rolled his eyes and punched Joe in the arm a little harder than necessary. While Joe winced and rubbed his arm, Megan finally left and Sam scooted closer to them with a small sigh of relief.

"What's wrong?" Fred chuckled with a smirk. "Tired of your little nerdy girlfriend already? I can hook you up with a cheerleader if you want."

"Ugh, for the hundredth time Megan isn't my girlfriend, we're just friends." Sam said irritably. "And I'm not interested in dating right now. Anyways, are you coming to my debate meet? It's the last one of the season and-"

"Whelp, looks like the team is calling me over." Fred interrupted, standing up quickly.

"Fine, fine no one has to go to my meet." Sam grumbled. "I'll just win _again_ and no one but my teammates will know about it."

"Megan will be there." Joe pointed out.

"Aww, isn't that sweet," Fred laughed. "But tell you what, if my dad lets me have the truck tonight, then I'll come see you. Where is it again?"

"The Baltimore Convention Center in Maryland." Sam sat up smiling again. "We're going against Saint Bridget's Academy for Young Girls. I know it's kinda far but you can car pool with the debate team if you want."

Fred's smile fell a little. He didn't want to hurt Sam's feelings but there was no way he was going to spend three hours in a car with a bunch of know it alls. "We'll see."

* * *

Sam checked his phone as soon as it vibrated and frowned. Of course Fred wasn't going to make it. He should have known Fred was going to flake when he turned down the car pool with the rest of the debate team. Sam sighed and texted Fred back, telling him he understood. He sat in the one of the meeting rooms in the convention center with his team, waiting for the meet to start. His four other teammates where waiting in the room as well, either on their Kindles or reading textbooks.

There was Randy, a freshman like him who was actually two years younger than him because he skipped two grades. Marcus and Dwayne were both juniors and heavily into dungeons and dragons. And Milton was a sophomore who had the uncanny ability to try out for every school play or musical, and yet still never get any parts. They all had joined to gain at least one after school activity for college applications. Sam himself had been elected unofficial chairperson since he was the most serious about his academics.

"Okay guys, big big night tonight!" Their sponsoring teacher, Mr. Graveson, came into the room carrying boxes of granola bars and bottled waters. "Does everyone know your topics and positions?"

Randy piped up first. "I- I have 'Should schools block YouTube', a-and my stance is n-no."

"I have 'All students should have to do one year of community service', my stance is yes." Marcus declared proudly.

"And I have 'People should be fined for not recycling'. My stance is no." Dwayne stated.

"My topic is 'Every student should be required to take a performing arts course' and my stance is yeeeeeees!" Milton sung the last part making everyone cringe.

Finally, Sam spoke. "My topic is 'High stakes state testing should be abolished' and of course my stance is no. Easy win."

"Good, good." Mr. Graveson nodded making his glasses bounce on his nose. He began handing out pre-game granola bars and water bottles and repeated the same rules that they had memorized by heart by now.

Before they knew it, a rep came telling them that it was almost time for their team to face the other team. Taking only their water bottles, Sam and the rest of the team left the waiting room and headed to the backstage of the main area. They lined up against the wall, waiting for the other two lesser teams to finish their round.

"Oh no," Dwayne hissed, his voice low and nervous, "the other team is coming down the hall. Do you think _she'll_ be with them?"

Sam looked over to where he was staring and saw four girls walking down the same hall they walked down. They were wearing black and red pleated skirts, short sleeved white blouses, black buttoned up vests and white knee socks. It was Sam's guess that they were the opposing team from Saint Bridget's Academy. He didn't see anything special about them though and turned to the others in confusion.

"Who are you talking about?" He asked in a whisper. "They look like any other team we've faced so far except they're all girls. But they do look like they're a member short."

Dwayne took another look down the hallway and paled. "Not anymore."

Sam looked too and his eyes widened a little. Coming down the hall was the last member of the Saint Bridget's team and despite the matching uniform, she definitely stood out from her teammates. Her skirt looked the same knee length as the others' but it swung around her swaying hips in a way that none of the other girls' had. She walked with an air of confidence and instead of the standard black Mary Janes she wore black leather ankle boots. While the other girls had their hair neatly tied back or combed back, her inky black locks were tied messily and haphazardly into a knot on her head. And even though it was almost eight o'clock at night and they were clearly indoors, the girl wore oversized dark sunglasses.

"Don't stare at her." Milton jostled Sam. "That's how she gets in your head."

"What are you talking about?" Sam frowned in confusion. "Who is she and why do you seem so worried?"

The three older boys exchanged a look while Randy and Sam just looked confused.

"The girl with the sunglasses, her name is San-Li Nikendo," Marcus explained in a hushed whisper, "she's a freshman like you two but she's won every single debate match she's ever been in. Even before she joined a debate team."

"Some people say that she even hacked into Princeton's online debate club and debated some of the college students." Milton whispered. "And she was still in middle school."

Sam rolled his eyes. Rumors like these were usually stupid and unfounded. "She doesn't look that smart." He frowned and went back to looking at her.

As a matter of fact, this San-Li girl didn't look that smart at all. While her teammates were standing together going over their speaking points, she just stood against the wall apart from them, not even bothering to look at them. As a matter of fact, she didn't seem to be looking at anyone or anything with those dark, oversized sunglasses on. She was just slowly blowing a bubble with her gum and popping it.

"Don't under estimate her." Dwayne warned. "It's not just that she's smart. She messes with your temper. Makes you flip out and forget every point that you were going to make. Last year, I heard that she made a senior with a perfect record run off the stage crying. And he was supposed to be the valedictorian of his school."

"And I think she's going against you." Milton pointed out. "Be careful that she doesn't mess you up too."

"I don't believe it." Sam scoffed. "No amount of mind games or tricks can win a debate. I got this match in a bag."

"Hey."

All five of them tensed and looked up to see the very girl they were talking about standing right in front of them. San-Li lifted her sunglasses up to steady all five of them, revealing deep black eyes lined with equally black winged eyeliner.

"Which one of you is Sam?" She asked, her eyes flickering across them.

There was an audible gulp as Sam's so called teammates stepped back, leaving Sam to San-Li's scrutiny. Her eyes took him in and for a breathless moment Sam was actually afraid that she would physically hurt him. But then a playful spark came to her eyes and her lips curved into a smirk.

"Easy win." She chuckled and finally stepped away.

Easy win? Sam blinked in confusion before white hot rage began bubbling in his veins. Easy win!? Why? Because she thought she could intimidate him? Fat chance! Sam had studied and worked his butt off to win this debate like he had all of the others. And he had done it without any fancy mind games or tricks. Sam would show her. He would show San-Li exactly what happened when you tried to rely on intimidation without any intellectual backing.

* * *

Two Hours Later:

Sam was stunned. Stunned and mortified almost to the point of numbness. He had lost. But he had more than just lost. Sam had been thoroughly beaten and humiliated. San-Li had not only bested him on an intellectual level, she had somehow managed to nearly get him screaming at her. More than once the judge had to tell Sam to calm down or else he would forfeit the match. His heart was still pounding in his chest.

"I-I'm sure it was just a fluke." Megan patted his arm soothingly. "These sort of things happens sometimes. And if you ask me, she's should have been disqualified from the match when she first started in on you."

"Technically she didn't break any rules," Sam responded numbly, "I just couldn't stand her stupid smirking. Or the fact that she questioned the validity of every single point I made."

Megan winced and remained silent but Sam barely noticed. They were sitting at one of the tables in the reception room for the after debate refreshments. Sam wasn't hungry though. In fact, the more and more he thought about it, Sam realized that above all else he was angry. That match should have been his. This San-Li girl looked like she would have fit the role of party girl better than an intellectual or serious student. If it had been anyone else from Saint Bridget's Sam may not have minded the loss as much. Anyone else but that smug, constantly smirking, arrogant-

"Hey Sam,"

Sam looked up and once again was caught off guard by San-Li standing in front of him. Under her arm was the debate trophy that should have been his.

"Hi," Megan stood up and offered her hand tersely to San-Li, "good game. It was really close between you two."

San-Li chuckled (the same low chuckle that set Sam's blood on fire and almost made him lose control and lose the match) and ignored Megan's outstretched hand. "It was hardly a close match. Maybe if your little boyfriend managed his temper more and focused on his speaking points it would have been."

Sam immediately leapt up and started yelling. "You were the one practically mocking me on stage!"

His outburst made the reception hall go silent and everyone stared at them. Sam blushed furiously and quickly sat back down but San-Li looked unfazed. Her eyes practically glittered as she continued looking at him, a small smirk curving her lips.

"It was hardly mocking," she said, "just a little friendly… riling up."

With that she gave another laugh and finally walked away.

"Man, I hate her." Sam mumbled as he continued to watch her. "I hate her so much."


End file.
